Chickpea and Mushroom Meat-less-balls – Polpette
These vegetarian patties – polpette, in Italian – with chickpeas, mushroom, cheese, and egg make for a rich and flavorful vegetarian main course. They are prepared by blending cooked chickpeas with mushrooms that have been previously sautéed in a pan. The mixture is combined with eggs, grated cheese, and breadcrumbs, and can then be either baked in the oven or fried.
Ingredients
- 400 gr Chickpeas, cooked and drained
- 450 gr Drk Crimini Mushrooms
- 1+1 Eggs for the mixture plus more for coating
- 60 gr Grated Parmigiano or Peccorino cheese 1/2 cup
- 60 gr Breadcrumbs for the mixture, plus extra for coating as needed 1/2 cup
- 1 clove garlic, fresh parsley, salt, and pepper (to taste); Extra virgin olive oil:
- 1 tbsp Fresh parsley,
- Salt and pepper (to taste)
- 1 tbsp Extra virgen olive oil
Instructions
- Clean the mushrooms and slice or dice them. If you are using a can of cooked chickpeas, rinse them thoroughly to clear the syrup
- In a frying pan, heat a drizzle of olive oil together with a clove of garlic. Add the mushrooms and cook over medium heat until tender and all their liquid has evaporated.
- In a food processor, combine the cooked mushrooms (discarding the garlic if used a clove) and the chickpeas. Process until you obtain a coarsely chopped mixture—do not blend too finely.
- Transfer the chopped mixture to a large bowl. Add the egg, grated cheese and chopped parsley. Mix well, then gradually incorporate the breadcrumbs, adding them little by little until the mixture becomes compact and easy to shape by hand.
- Take small portions of the mixture and roll them into balls. If you wish, you can dip them in beaten egg and then in breadcrumbs for a crispier coating. Flatten them a little so they look like thick patties
- Cooking them in the oven is the healthiest alternative. IArrange the meatballs on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, drizzle a little oil over the top, and bake at 350°F for about 15–20 minutes, turning them halfway through cooking.
- Alternatively, you can cook them in a pan. Heat plenty of oil and fry the pattiess until golden brown, turning them regularly.
Notes
- I use a can of cooked chickpeas (14.5 oz) and 16 oz of crimini mushrooms
- I also used garlic paste (1 tsp = 1 clove)
- You can keep the breaded patties (before cooking) in the freezer. Set the prepared patties on top of an oven tray with parchment paper and slide in the freezer until ptties harden. Then you can store them in a ziplog bag
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