Ain't Nothin' Awful 'Bout Homemade Falafel.

Reunited finally! I have been lost without my computer for almost 2 months now, thus the absence of a new blog post. My computer is now safe and sound with me again, so I can begin to add more posts! 

This one is from a while ago but again, I was unable to post it, but delicious none the less. Falafel. Let me count the ways I love you. Or just show it by posting the recipe for some yummy homemade ones. If you've never had the pleasure of trying falafel let me enlighten you. It is a fried chickpea patty, often served in a pita pocket with a tahini (sesame seed spread) sauce. While it may not sound "OMG" worthy, one bite would change your mind.

This recipe was adapted from the Picky Eater's Blog, where she posted an easy to follow recipe for baking the falafel instead of frying them. Here's the link if you'd like the original recipe:
Picky Eater's Blog Falafel




Homemade Falafel
Makes 15 Patties

15 oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 medium red onion, chopped
1/4 cup whole wheat flour
3 T. parsley, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 T. cilantro, chopped
1/2 T. ground cumin
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. baking powder
1 T. lemon juice
1/4 t. paprika
salt and pepper
cooking spray
Pita bread/ pockets
Tzatziki/ Tahini

First, preheat your oven to 375, and spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Set aside.
Now comes the other easy part. Add all the ingredients except baking powder, pita, and taziki or tahini into a food processor and blend until everything is combined.

Now transfer the mixture to a bowl and  stir in baking powder. You can also taste to see if you need any more seasoning such as salt and pepper. I really love garlic, so I added some garlic powder to mine, and also a little bit of cayenne to in the words of Emeril "kick it up a notch."

Now comes the fun part! Take a spoonful of the mixture and roll into a ball in your hands. If you're afraid of getting dirty...then you shouldn't be cooking in the first place. It's really not that messy of a job, and you get the job of smelling like garlic and cilantro for the rest of the day! I managed to get about 15 patties when I made my recipe, but feel free to make them smaller or bigger to your liking. Just keep an eye on them when baking since the time it takes them to cook will be different than the one I provided.
Place the patties on the prepared baking sheet , and flatten slightly, then give them a generous spray with the cooking spray, and pop them in the oven for about 15 minutes.

Once they've been in the oven for 15 minutes, take them out and give them a flip. We want to equally share the golden brown crispness to both sides. Pop them back in the oven for another 10-15 minutes.

In the meantime, you can prepare the fixins' for a nice falafel pita! While traditionally falafel is served with a tahini sauce, I did not have any on hand, but instead had a greek yogurt dip called tzatziki (ta-zee-kee). It's a cucumber and spinach dip, that went pretty well with the falafel. Feel free to swap out for tahini or even just eat em' plain.

I did end up making my own pita pockets, but they were far from being "pockets" and more like flattened frisbees, so I didn't end up posting them. I'll give them another try, and if successful I will share my glory. For the meantime you can just buy some pita pockets already made. I also added some chopped tomato and romaine lettuce to my pita pocket along with the tzatziki to await the arrival of some piping hot falafel. Once they look golden on the top you can take them out of the oven and enjoy! They reheat pretty well, so you can enjoy them over and over again.

Hope you enjoy this simply delicious recipe as much as I do!