I was experimenting with cooked lentils one afternoon, because I was looking for a snack that is higher in protein than a usual snack (rice cakes, for example) and one that uses minimal ingredients. I tried making a lentil wrap, but sadly that recipe is yet to be discovered. Instead, the lentil wrap ‘dough’ was a little tweaked and transformed into a wonderful flapjack ‘batter’. Now, I’m sure you can make large savoury flapjacks with this batter, but I think making these into bite-size snacks are so much better- bite-sized and shareable.
These little bites are a good substitution for deep-fried bites, or sometimes baked biscuits that are anyway loaded with saturated fat and high in carbs. These bites can be eaten as a snack during the day or you can add your favourite savoury topping and serve as pre-dinner snacks / canapés.
I know these bites may not be the most appealing little snacks you’ve ever seen, BUT they are vegetarian, higher in protein than your average ready-made canapé biscuits. These are also made with minimal added oil.
The first time I served these savoury lentil bites was at a South African braai (bbq) around the corner from our home in Lagos. I had two types of toppings; one with cream cheese, chorizo and baby spinach; the other with salmon cream cheese, tomato and cucumber. But these combinations were just created with the ingredients I had in my fridge. What you can add as toppings is up to your discretion, as these bites serve as the ‘vessel’ to other flavour combinations.
All of the guests really liked it and tried to figure out what the base was. They were so pleased to hear that it was low carb and something they’ve never tried.
Easy to prepare, you probably already have all of the ingredients in your pantry / the fridge, what more do you want? Give them a try at your next dinner party.
Ingredients
- 1 cup cooked green / brown lentils
- 3 eggs
- ± ½ teaspoon salt
- ± ¼ teaspoon pepper
- Pinch of paprika
- ± 3 sprigs of chives or the white part of spring onions (replace with ± ¼ teaspoon onion powder if you do not have chives / spring onion)
- 30 ml coconut oil / olive oil
Instructions
- Mix together all of the ingredients in a small blender until the consistency is smooth.
- Pour small circles of ‘batter’ onto a pre-heated non-stick pan. It is not necessary to use oil.
- Once little bubbles start to form, turn the flapjacks around and cook for another 20 - 30 seconds.
- Remove from the pan and cool down on a cooling rack to avoid the bites getting soggy.
- Add your own combination of toppings and serve.
- You can prepare these a day in advance and stored in the fridge.