Millet Cakes with Carrots and Spinach:

The Millet Cakes with Carrots and Spinach:
These veggie-packed curried millet cakes make a fun, unexpected, and delicious vegetarian dinner. From The Complete Vegetarian Cookbook. I don't know about you, but I've spent a lot of time trying to get quinoa to stick together to form cohesive patties. With eggs, without eggs. I've made countless variations, some more successful than others, but now I have just one word: millet.

What is Millet?
If you've never cooked millet before, you're going to love it. One of my favourite grains, millet has a delicious nutty flavour and versatile texture. Depending on what water:grain ratio you use while cooking it, it can become a fluffy couscous-like grain or a creamy millet porridge. Like brown rice, it's a naturally gluten-free grain, so even if you're gluten-free, you can enjoy these yummy millet cakes.

After making them a few times, these little guys have become one of my favourite millet recipes. Luckily for me, millet is stickier than quinoa, so they bind together really easily. They're packed with carrots, spinach, fresh herbs, curry and garlic. This recipe is so flavourful and foolproof.

1 cup millet, rinsed
2 cups water
kosher or sea salt
black pepper, freshly ground
3 tsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 shallot, minced
6 oz (6 cups) baby spinach, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and shredded
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 tsp. curry powder
¼ cup plain yogurt (vegan version: ¼ cup + 1 Tbsp. almond milk)
1 large egg, lightly beaten (vegan version: ¼ cup ground flaxseed)
2 Tbsp. fresh cilantro, minced

To Serve:
Fish Roe Dip (Greek Taramosalata)
Garlic Yogurt and Cucumber Dip (Greek Tzatziki)
Lemon Tarragon Sauce

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C/160°C fan, Gas Mark 4) and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

Combine the millet, water, and ½ tsp. salt in medium saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer until grains are tender and liquid is absorbed, 15-20 minutes. Turn off the heat, let millet sit, covered, for 10 minutes; transfer to a large bowl.

Heat 1 Tbsp. oil in 12" nonstick skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add the shallot and cook until softened, about 3 minutes. Stir in the spinach and carrots and cook until the spinach wilts, about 2 minutes. Stir in the garlic, curry powder, ½ tsp. salt, and ¼ tsp. pepper and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Transfer the mixture to the bowl with millet.

Add the yogurt, egg, (or flax + almond milk) and cilantro into the millet mixture and fold until well combined. Use a ⅓ cup measuring cup to scoop the mixture, then form into a ½" thick cake, and place on prepared sheet. Repeat.

Refrigerate cakes until chilled and firm, about 30 minutes. (15 minutes for the vegan version).

Drizzle the cakes with olive oil and bake 25-30 minutes or until the edges are crispy and cakes are cooked through.

Makes 12 cakes.