Meat-less-balls for Your Favorite Vegetarian
Photos: Ed Anderson
Field Greens Meatlessballs
Hot fried little meatlessballs, the size of a cherry, make a nice snack or appetizer to pass around. You can also make them bigger, replace the cumin with fennel seeds and the cilantro with basil or oregano, and eat them simmered in marinara sauce and tossed with pasta. They make a good lunch or dinner served with some boiled or roasted vegetables or a salad, with a spoonful or two of yogurt as a sauce. These fritters are also good later, to eat at room temperature out of hand and on the go.
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 small yellow onion, diced
Salt
2 garlic cloves, chopped
½ cup roughly chopped cilantro
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
1 bunch chard or kale, washed and sautéed until tender and then chopped fine
1 cup stale bread crumbs, fine or a little chunky
2 eggs
¼ cup crumbled feta
All-purpose flour, for dredging
Oil, for frying
Heat a skillet over medium-low heat and add the oil, onion, and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Add the garlic, cilantro, and cumin seeds, stir for 30 seconds, and then turn the mixture out into a large bowl. Let cool for 5 minutes and then add the chard, bread crumbs, eggs, and feta. Mix with your hands until completely combined. Make a little ball or patty, dip it into the flour, pat off the excess, and either deep-or shallow-fry it. Cool for a minute and taste. Make any corrections needed for flavor or texture (more egg or a splash of water if too dry; more bread crumbs if too wet), and then form, flour, and fry the rest.
Reprinted from Twelve Recipes with permission from William Morrow / Harper Collins © 2014 by Cal Peternell
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