Revithokeftedes and my cat Lisa
Revithokeftedes (pr. reh-vee-thaw-kae-FTEH-thes) aka chickpea Patties is a delicious, healthy, Greek, vegan meal.
Before going to the recipe, let me tell you about our cat, Lisa.
I do not remember ever mentioning our pet. We have a Siamese cat named Lisa and she is ten years old.
She is also a Math genius.
You must be wondering what Lisa has to do with Revithokeftedes. In a way she does because my love for cats grew when I was about 10 years old.
This is a painting I did of Lisa during the first year of painting classes I took. It's a very naive painting but I definitely paint much better now.
How is Lisa connected with Revithokeftedes
Back then, next door to us lived a nice old couple.
The man was Cypriot and the lady was from the Greek island of Chios.
They were not blessed with children and Mrs. Ypatia was really fond of me. She also loved cats.
I remember she had more than ten cats of her own but she would also take care of all the stray cats.
Although they were just the two of them, she cooked a lot of food and when she had a special treat she would always call me to give me some to try.
She was a really good cook as everything she would make was really delicious.
In some occasions when she needed help she would call me, especially during Easter or Christmas to help her make tsourekia, kourabiedes, melomakarona, koulourakia, diples, kaltsounia, etc.
That was my first love for the Greek cuisine and my love for cats.
Whenever I used to go at her place I loved gazing at some of her house ornaments which were mostly souvenirs she had brought from Greece or from Alexandria, where she and her husband had lived for many years.
I remember she had a camel shaped chair which was my favourite to sit on but the best part was playing with her cats.
One of the "unusual" things she would make was "keftedes" out of various dried legumes.
I say "unusual" as the only keftedes my mother would make (as well as all Cypriots) were the usual ones with meat.
My favourite of all her keftedes, was revithokeftedes.
Unfortunately I do not have any of her recipes, as I was only a child then, but this is a recipe I have been doing for many years and each time I make them, I have very sweet memories of her and her cats and kittens.
Today I have two recipes to share.
The first one is my creation with grated courgette (zucchini) and chickpeas.
Although, we are not gluten intolerant I used cornmeal as well as gluten free instant oats which are also full of fibre.
The second recipe is the traditional one, which you will find at the end.
For both recipes, you can cook the chickpeas from scratch or use cooked stewed chickpeas or canned chickpeas.
These vegan chickpea patties, apart from tasting great, are also very healthy as they are low in fat, a great source of protein and very filling.
Gluten Free Revithokeftedes (Chickpea Fritters)
These vegan and gluten free chickpea patties, apart from tasting great, they are also very healthy as they are a great source of protein and fibre,
Ingredients
- 1 ¾ cups - 275 grams (0.6 lbs) chickpeas, soaked in water
- 50 grams (1.7 oz), about ½ cup, grated courgette (zucchini)
- 50 grams (1.7 oz), about ½ cup, grated carrot
- 85 grams (3 oz), 1 medium onion, grated
- 1 teaspoon roasted garlic puree or 1 clove garlic
- 2 tablespoon garlic oil
- ¼ teaspoon cumin
- 1 teaspoon spice mixture
- ¾ tablespoon salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 3 tablespoon finely chopped parsley (plus other herbs like mint or dill)
- 40 grams (1.4 oz or ½ cup) gluten free instant oats
- 75 grams (2.6 oz) cornmeal
- Olive oil for frying
Instructions
- Put chickpeas in a bowl, covering them with 5 - 8 cm / 2 - 3 inches water on top and soak overnight. (If using leftover cooked chickpeas or canned ones, drain and skip the above step.
- In a food processor pulse the chickpeas If you have a small food processor, do this gradually but without puréeing them If you find any difficulty in pulsing them add a tablespoon water and continue.
- Grate the zucchini and carrot and squeeze to remove excess water.
- Empty them in a bowl Put the onion and garlic in the food processor and pulse.
- Add all the remaining ingredients except the cornmeal for dredging and mix well.
- Shape them into round or oblonged patties, dredge them in cornmeal and fry in hot olive oil.
- Remove on kitchen paper to absorb excess oil and serve as a side dish.
Notes
If you prefer to bake them in the oven, follow the instructions in the recipe that follows.
Nutrition Information
Yield 20 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 66Total Fat 3gSaturated Fat 0gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 2gCholesterol 0mgSodium 267mgCarbohydrates 9gFiber 2gSugar 1gProtein 2g
If you are not fasting, you can add some feta in but add less salt and serve them with Tzatziki, Garlic Sauce and Tahini Sauce and a salad.
You can find more Lenten recipes here.
Revithokeftedes (Chickpea Patties)
Revithokeftedes (pr. reh-vee-thaw-kae-FTEH-thes) aka chickpea Patties is a delicious, healthy, Greek, vegan meal.
Ingredients
- ½ kilo chickpeas, preferably without skin
- 1 onion, grated
- 2 spring onions, white part only, finely chopped
- 1 cup of parsley, finely cut
- 2 spoonfuls of dried mint, crumbled
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 large boiled potato, mashed
- 1 tablespoon of flour
- 70 grams sesame seeds
Instructions
- Soak the chickpeas in water overnight. Wash them well and remove as much of the peel, if any. Drain, add fresh water and bring to a boil. Skim all the foam that forms with a slotted spoon and then drain. Put them in the pot again and add water and remove any more peels which will float on the surface. Put them back on the heat with water and when they boil add salt and simmer until they become soft. This may take 1 - 2 hours depending on the quality of the chickpeas. You can boil the potato separately or add it half way through.
- If using cooked or canned chickpeas skip the above step and boil the potato separately.
- Drain and mash with a fork. I do not mash them in a food processor as we want some small bits of chickpeas in the patties.
- Grate the onion and finely cut the spring onions and the parsley
- Add all the remaining ingredients except the sesame seeds and mix well.
- Refrigerate for half an hour and form them into balls and then flatten them into patties.
- Dredge them in sesame seeds.
- Preheat the oven to 180oC (350oF).
- Put them a baking tin lined with parchment paper.
- Bake for 20 minutes and turn them over. Bake until golden, for about 15 more minutes.
Nutrition Information
Yield 8 Serving Size 1Amount Per Serving Calories 182Total Fat 6gSaturated Fat 1gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 5gCholesterol 0mgSodium 86mgCarbohydrates 26gFiber 7gSugar 4gProtein 8g
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Kopiaste and Kali Orexi!
How would you say these are similar or different in comparison to falafel? They look yummy.
Oh, these look wonderful! Also, your kitty is lovely! I have two Siamese cats myself. 😀
Cheers!
+Jessie
a.k.a. The Hungry Mouse
Lovely Ivy! They're a little similar to felafel aren't they but def very Greek. Lisa looks cute! Siamese are known for their temperament. Is she friendly? LOL @ the name Lisa!
Lisa is gorgeous Ivy! I also like your painting of her - I wish I could paint that well.
Anything made with chickpeas has to be good, Ivy.
Your cat is adorable! I love cats!
And I think your artwork is very good...especially if you say this is when you were a beginner.
And your recipes always make me hungry. I love chickpeas so I will have to try this!
Hi Michael and thanks for visiting. I just checked out a few falafel recipes and the general idea is the same just the spices and herbs are quite different.
Peter, you are right about Siamese cats and you should know that they used to have Siamese cats to keep strangers away. She is not very friendly to strangers but with us she is very playful, affectionate and playful.
About her name. Before buying the cat and deciding which breed to buy I bought a book to learn all about the cats and was reading it to my daughter who was six at the time. One of the cats was described as the queen of all cats and my daughter was impressed on that so she kept saying that she wanted the queen, so when we finally bought the cat we named her after Her Majesty 😛
I hope my English friends will not take this as an offense.
Thanks Aparna, then I am sure you will also like my today's post.
Jessie, Cakelaw and Alexandra, they are right to say that wherever a pet is involved they become the protagonists. Lisa has had her 15 minutes of fame 😛
chickpea patties sound great! And you Paint too? i've always wanted to be able to draw and paint!!!
What a beautiful kitty! I love kitties and we have a Javanese cat named Lucy. I bet Lisa and Lucy would be very good friends :-p And I love your paint. I don't think it is naive at all 😉
Your cat is adorable!! The chickpea patties sound great. I like the mint in the recipe.
I love your kitty, Ivy! And I think your painting is beautiful! You are really talented!
What a sweet little kitty! I've been spending less time in front of my computer and am just now getting caught up on your latest creations. Chickpeas are my favorite and next to hummus, turning them into patties is one of the tastiest ways to enjoy them.
You are so lucky to have such wonderful memories of your childhood sis. Nice to have a neighbour to teach you the little tricks of preparing delicious Greek dishes.
Ivy this looks wonderful and I adore your kitty too 🙂
Rosie x