A healthy and frugal supper for January

So, it’s January and generally it’s a quieter, more sober, frugal and possibly even (dare I say it) healthier month than any other. Personally, I’m trying to be at least a little frugal (I like the word frugal, it pleases me) without compromising too much on enjoyable goodies, but food prices are rising where sadly the salary is not and who knows, hopefully a little frugality might also equate to being healthier anyway…hopefully.
At the moment, I’m all about the chickpea. They are healthy, cheap, tasty, filling and oh so versatile. You can use them in all sorts of contexts. The other night I had a lovely chickpea dish so I thought I’d share my version of a recipe for chickpea fritters!
You will need:
1 can of chickpeas, drained
2 spring onions
2 cloves of garlic
A bunch of fresh basil leaves
1 tsp hot chili powder (more if you’re feeling spicy – you could also use a fresh chili)
50g of grated cheese (use something that melts well, cheddar or parmesan both work, I also plan to try this using halloumi)
Salt and Pepper
1 egg (beaten)
1 tbsp plain flour
Olive Oil
Makes about 6 small fritters or 4 large ones.
For the fritters:
Tip the drained chickpeas into a large mixing bowl and coarsely crush them using a potato masher or a fork. You want them to be squished but not pureed. Finely chop the spring onions, the garlic and basil leaves and stir them into the chickpeas until well mixed. Season the mixture with salt, pepper and chili powder or fresh chili. Then stir in the grated cheese. Finally, pour over the beaten egg and combine well. Then stir in the flour so the mixture is not too wet. Put some flour over your hands and then take a bit of the mixture and make it into a patty or burger shape. Heat the olive oil until almost smoking on a high heat and fry the patties for about 3 or 4 minutes on each side or until golden brown. The flour on the outside should make them nice and crispy but don’t put too much flour on or your will taste it. Place the cooked patties on a plate covered in kitchen roll to remove excess oil and serve while hot with a spicy tomato salsa or lovely salad. I had mine with garlic mayo and a cous cous salad with broccoli, mozzarella and cherry tomatoes. I reckon it’s a healthier alternative to burgers, and cheaper too. Also a great dinner if you’ve got a vegetarian guest or a nice starter with a spicy dip.
Enjoy!