Curried Salmon Patties with Oven Roasted Sweet Potato "fries"

So, every night I come home and (sometimes more enthusiastically than others) put something together to take to work for lunch the next day. The last few days have been fairly basic with me not having much more than vegetables to play around with. It was during this time that I realised how much I rely on baby spinach leaves to make up the bulk of my lunch. They're so amazingly versatile and I find that I use them in almost any savoury dish - salads, stir fries, soups, scrambled eggs, smoothies and so on. This post isn't about baby spinach leaves though, even though they do feature in tomorrows lunch - it is in-fact about my spontaneous decision to make Curried Salmon Patties and Sweet Potato "Fries"! I say "Fries" because they are really oven roasted sweet potato pieces but.. we all know how yummy oven roasted vegetables are.

Curried Salmon patties

I put these together on the spot with no real direction but they came out really good! After working out the nutritional breakdown of them, I realised how wonderful they actually are!

Salmon contains Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (healthy unsaturated fats) which is something that many people don't eat enough of. These fatty acids are mostly found in fish (salmon and tuna), flaxseeds which are often used in bread and other baked goods and walnuts among some other things. Salmon is said to have contribute to a reduced risk of heart disease and stroke, improved brain function, lowered risk of dementia (including Alzheimer's) and improved bone strength (plus some).

Salmon is also exceptionally high in Protein (as can be seen below) which is great for muscle growth and repair - for this reason is it commonly consumed by people adopting a high protein diet to compliment a strength training regimen. Since protein is a complex molecule and takes longer to break down that Carbohydrates, it supplies a longer lasting source of energy and keeps us fuller for longer - often aiding in weight loss programs.

Salmon is also a source of Calcium which is essential for healthy bones and teeth and when combined with impact exercise can contribute to the prevention of Osteporosis and other related conditions. 

Ingredients

57g tin of Salmon in Springwater (I used the John West brand)

10g low fat ricotta cheese (I used Perfect Italiano light Ricotta)

1 tsp buckwheat flour

1/2 tsp curry powder

1 tsp mixed dried herbs

Method

-Drain the Salmon and combine thoroughly with all other ingredients in a bowl - I used my hands : )

-Shape mixture into a small ball and flatten slightly before putting in a pre heated pan that has been sprayed with a small amount of olive oil

-Cook on each side for 3 or 4 minutes and they're done!

Coming in at only 336 kilojoules/80 calories per patty, these provide an amazing amount of goodness and would be a wonderful inclusion into a low calorie diet. For those of us not on a low calorie diet - eat many : ). See details nutrition values below:

Sweet Potato "fries"

Sweet Potatoes are a great source of Vitamin C and just a 1 cup serving of the vegetable contains 65% of the minimum necessary daily amount. Sweet Potato also contains great amounts of Calcium, folate, potassium, dietary fibre, antioxidants and many vitamins and minerals. Sweet Potatoes are a low Glycemic Index food (lower than white potatoes) which means that they cause a slow release of energy into the body preventing the rapid spike in blood sugar that is seen when consuming sugary and processed foods. This also means that this vegetable is likely to keep you full for a significant length of time.

How did I make them? SO simple.

For one serving of sweet potato fries, you will need:

1/2 sweet potato
spray olive oil
1/2 tsp mixed dried herbs

Preheat oven to 160 degrees celcius
Peel the sweet potato and cut into pieces in the shape as seen in the above photos
Place in a large bowl and toss with the oil and herbs to coat
Place on a baking tray and place in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until softened.

THATS IT :D

Now that my meal has been transferred into the not-so-glamorous container that I will take to work tomorrow, im ready for a good nights sleep : ).

Goodnight everybody!

-Mel