Vegan Potato Lentil Cakes with Chive Cream

These vegan potato lentil cakes with chive cream sauce are flavorful and satisfying. Packed with green lentils, yukon gold potatoes, and kale, they’re bursting with savory flavors, hearty texture, and oodles of plant-based protein (boasting a mighty 8 grams of protein per patty). I recommend enjoying 2–3 per serving, which makes for a meal with a whopping 16–24 grams of protein (and 8–12 grams of fiber to boot)!

These nutritious, plant-powerful patties are a play on these carrot-lentil cakes.

Yukon gold potatoes take the place of carrots, green lentils take the place of red ones, and the spices/herbs are reconfigured to complement the shifts accordingly.

Now, I know what you're thinking: Why yukon gold potatoes? Why not something seemingly more nutritious like sweet potatoes.

First of all, there's already a similar sweet potato rendition of this recipe on the blog. Second of all, white potatoes aren't nearly as devoid of nutrients as their reputation would have you believe.

That's right, I said it (in not so many words): White potatoes—or in this case, gold potatoes—are, in fact, nutritious.

Did you know that a single medium yukon gold potato meets one half the recommended daily value of vitamin C? Seriously. They also offer a generous boost of both iron and potassium. But that's not all. Check out this post for more on the benefits of potatoes.

To make these nutritious patties, you'll start by steaming yukon gold potatoes and simmering green lentils. As they cook, you can get to work on preparing the other ingredients (e.g., chop kale, measure oats, mince garlic, etc.)

Once the potatoes and lentils are ready, add them to a large mixing bowl and use the back of a fork to roughly mash them. You want to retain quite a bit of texture, so don't get too mash-happy, but you do want them to be broken down enough to bind the rest of the ingredients together.

Once the potatoes and lentils are mashed, add rolled oats, chopped lacinato kale, pepitas, chopped chives, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, smoked paprika, sea salt, and black pepper. Give everything a good stir to combine.

The "dough" will be damp but able to hold its shape when pressed.

Scoop out ⅓-cup mounds of the dough, form into patties, and transfer to a lined baking tray. Once all the patties have been formed, bake them for 20–25 minutes, or until their exteriors are golden and feel gently set with a slight crispness.

While the patties bake, you'll get to work on the chive cream sauce.

Add raw cashews (pre-soaked if you're not using a high-speed blender), filtered water, chives, apple cider vinegar, and sea salt to a blender. Blend on high until smooth.

I love how the chives gently paint the cream sauce a pale spring green.

Once everything's ready, it's time to serve.

Serve these patties on their own, atop a bed of greens, tucked into warm pita bread or a cozy wrap, or even on a bun (like a burger). Then, generously drizzle each with the chive cream sauce and sprinkle with freshly chopped chives.

These cakes can be refrigerated for up to one week but they also freeze well (for up to one month) and can be thawed as needed for quick, protein-packed weeknight meals.

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4.50 from 2 votes

Vegan Potato Lentil Cakes with Chive Cream

These vegan potato lentil cakes with chive cream sauce are flavorful and satisfying. Packed with green lentils, yukon gold potatoes, and kale, they’re bursting with savory flavors, hearty texture, and oodles of plant-based protein (boasting a mighty 8 grams of protein per patty). I recommend enjoying 2–3 per serving, which makes for a meal with a whopping 16–24 grams of protein (and 8–12 grams of fiber to boot)!

Course Bigger Bites

Cuisine Gluten-Free, plant-based, Vegan

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 50 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 10 minutes

Servings 12 cakes/patties

Author Ashley

Ingredients

Potato Lentil Cakes

• 3 cups peeled and small-cubed yukon gold potatoes
• 1 cup green lentils, thoroughly rinsed and picked through
• 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 heaping cup stemmed and finely chopped lacinato "Dino" kale
• ½ cup raw pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds)
• ⅓ cup chopped fresh chives
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1 teaspoon fine grain sea salt or to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Chive Cream

• ¾ cup raw cashews, soaked for two hours (unless using a high-speed blender)
• ⅔ cup filtered water
• ¼ cup chopped fresh chives
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
• ½ teaspoon sea salt

Instructions

For the Potato Lentil Cakes

• Steam the potatoes in a steamer or over the stove for 20 to 25 minutes, or until just tender enough to smash (you don't want them to be mushy).
• While the potatoes are steaming, add the rinsed lentils to a medium saucepan and thoroughly cover with water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer, uncovered, for 20 minutes, or until firm-tender. If needed, add more water to keep the lentils submerged. Strain and set aside.
• Preheat the oven to 400F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or silpat.
• Add the steamed potatoes and cooked lentils to a large mixing bowl. Use the back of a fork to roughly mash (you want to retain quite a bit of texture). Add the rolled oats, kale, pepitas, chives, garlic, lemon juice, olive oil, paprika, sea salt, and black pepper. Thoroughly stir to combine, ensuring all ingredients are evenly dispersed. The mixture should be damp but able to hold its shape.
• Use a ⅓-cup measuring cup to scoop out ⅓ cup of the mixture. Form the mixture into a patty that is 1-inch thick and just shy of 3 inches in diameter, and transfer to the lined baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining mixture. You should have 10–12 patties. (Note: the uncooked mixture is damp and can be a bit challenging to form into patties, but I promise they're worth the effort.)
• Bake the patties for 23 to 25 minutes, or until the bottoms are golden-brown and they feel gently set but not firm.
• Remove from the oven and cool completely on the pan before moving. They'll continue to firm up as they cool.

For the Chive Cream

• Add all ingredients to a blender and blend on high until completely smooth and creamy. Transfer to an airtight jar or container and refrigerate until ready to serve.

To Serve

• The patties can be enjoyed on their own, over a bed of peppery greens, tucked into warm pita bread, or on bun. Serve warm with a generous drizzle of the chive cream.