Falafel
Falafel is a Middle Eastern specialty that is traditionally deep fried. In our recipe we’ve baked them, and saved you a ton of calories. All that’s left to do is stuff them into a wrap and fill with a variety of tasty sauces and vegetables.
For the best tasting results, take the time to soak the dried chickpeas overnight. Canned beans are over-tender and contain excess moisture that can prevent you from achieving the right consistency – making the falafels more mushy then dry in texture.
Once you’ve soaked and boiled the beans, place them into a food processor. Add the garlic, onion, lemon juice and spices, and pulse until finely chopped – although not pureed. You want the texture like quinoa, you don’t want to puree it smooth (we’re not making hummus!).
Shape the falafel into balls using a cookie scoop into an oblong shape using wet hands, flatten slightly. Brush each with a bit of oil to keep them moist while they bake.
Bake for 20 minutes, flip and bake for another 15. Once removed from the oven they will be quite crumbly, although once they cool slightly they will firm up nicely.
Cut up any veggies you’d like, prepare the sauces, and carefully remove the leaves from a head of lettuce to use as the wraps. You can serve the falafels warm or at room temperature.
Falafel
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked dried chickpeas or 3 ½ cups canned* chickpeas
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 3 cloves garlic minced
- ½ onion chopped
- 3 Tbsp lemon juice
- ¼ cup fresh cilantro
- ¼ cup fresh parsley
- ½ tsp cumin
- ½ tsp ground coriander
- ¼ tsp cayenne
- ¾ tsp salt
- 1 Tbsp ground flaxseeds
- ¼ cup chickpea garbanzo bean flour
- 1 Tbsp oil
Wraps (suggested filling ideas)
- Lettuce leaves use as the wrap
- Cucumber thinly sliced
- Onion thinly sliced
- Tomato thinly sliced
- Sprouts
- Roasted eggplant
- Fresh cilantro leaves
- Tahini Dressing
- Tzatziki Dressing
Instructions
- To prepare dried chickpeas, in a large bowl add 4 cups of water to the chickpeas and let sit for at least 8 hours, or overnight. Drain water and place chick peas in a large sauce pan. Add 7 cups of water and baking soda, and bring to a boil. Reduce and simmer for 30-50 minutes, or until soft (cooking time depends on freshness of chickpeas). Drain and let cool slightly.
- Into a food processor add cooked chickpeas, garlic, onion, lemon juice and spices. Pulse until finely chopped - you want the texture like quinoa, you don't want to puree it smooth.
- To cook the falafel, using wet hands, scoop up the mixture using a 1-2 Tbsp (or use a cookie baller) of the mixture and shape into flattened balls or oblong. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet and brush each lightly with some oil to keep them moist as they cook. Bake at 350°F for 20 minutes. Flip, then bake for an additional 15 minutes. Allow to cool before handing, as they are very crumbly at this point, but they will firm up as they cool.
- For the sauce, combine all ingredients together in a blender or mini food processor, and pulse until smooth.
- To serve, take a lettuce leaf and fill it with the veggies of your choice, 2 falafels and a drizzle of sauce. Fold to wrap up to enclose, and eat!
Notes
