Beetroot and chickpea cakes with tzatziki

Makes 12 cakes (serves 4)

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil,plus more for brushing
520 g (1 lb 3 oz/31/4 cups) cooked chickpeas or 2 425g cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed well
2 red onions, finely diced
8 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste
2 red beetroot (340 g/12 oz), grated on largest hole of a box grater
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
30 g (1 oz/3/4 cup) chopped dill
Freshly ground black pepper.
Tzatziki to serve (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 190 degrees gas mark 5. Line a baking tray with baking parchment, lightly brush with olive oil and set aside.
Place chickpeas in a bowl and crush with a potato masher; set aside. (Don’t mash the chickpeas completely. The mixture should be somewhat chunky.)
Warm olive oil in a wide frying pan over medium heat.
Add onions and sauté for 5 minutes or until browning.
Add garlic and salt and cook for another 3 minutes.
Stir in grated beetroot and continue cooking for another 6 to 8 minutes or until beetroot are cooked.
Add balsamic vinegar and remove from heat.
Add to mashed chickpeas along with chopped dill and mix well to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Divide mixture into 12 and shape into 12 cakes. Place on prepared tray and brush top and sides of each cake with olive oil.
Bake for15 minutes, rotate tray and continue baking for another 15 minutes or until brown on the bottom. Remove from oven; allow to cool for5 minutes before serving.
To serve, slide a thin spatula under each cake and flip onto plate so bottom side is up. Top with tzatziki or serve it on the side.

Watch: Homemade pasta in less than one minute

Tzatziki
1 large (225-g/8-oz) Middle Eastern cucumber (or a regular cucumber, peeled and deseeded)
360 ml (12 fl oz/11⁄2 cups) whole-milk Greek yogurt or Labneh 1
10 g (1⁄4 oz/1⁄4 cup) chopped dill
2 garlic cloves, crushed
3/4 teaspoon sea salt, plus more to taste
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
Freshly ground black pepper

Grate cucumber on the largest hole of a box grater, place in a sieve and squeeze out juice with your hands.
Drink or discard juice and add cucumber to a medium bowl along with yogurt, dill, garlic, salt, olive oil and a pinch of black pepper.
Stir to combine, season to taste and serve drizzled with olive oil.
Store any leftovers in an airtight container in the fridge for up to three days.

Recipes and images from At Home in the Whole Food Kitchen by Amy Chaplin (Murdoch Books) $39.99 available now.