Today, we falafel.
Oh, and Happy Mother’s Day for all who celebrate and are celebrated. As for me, I have no kids, but my plants seem to be doing well, so there’s that.
In other news, it’s crunch time. I leave for Nepal in less than a week (4 days, to be precise) and while I got a lot checked off my to-do list yesterday, there is still a lot left. The biggest challenge is how to get a sleeping bag, 15 days’ worth of clothing and hiking snacks stuffed into my duffle. Oy.
That’s a worry for later this week. Today is Sunday. No worrying allowed.
Eating good food, however, is allowed. Necessary, really. There’s a reason Sunday Dinner is sacrosanct.
The good food I’m bringing to your table today is a somewhat generic Middle Eastern favorite, but it’s a favorite for a reason, right?
Just because they’re generic doesn’t mean they are blah. Quite the contrary.
I don’t think I had my first falafel until I was in high school. As worldly as our table was, I can’t remember mom ever really making Middle Eastern food, or us really going out for it. That was until we moved to Flint-town and discovered Badawest, and our lives were forever changed. If you’re in the Flint, Michigan area, you HAVE to go. It’s the best ever and even though it’s totally no-frills, my family and I had more than one special occasion dinner there. When the food is that good, the lack of white tablecloths doesn’t matter.
I digress.
What is a falafel?
In case you have never had them, falafels are a vegetarian, deep-fried ball or patty-shaped fritter of featured often in Middle Eastern cuisine, and are made up of broad beans or chickpeas, or both.
They take about 5 minutes to throw together and about as many ingredients. Despite being this easy, I don’t eat them or make them often. Two reasons: 1) they’re fried and 2) I don’t fry things. No falafels for me.
A few weeks ago I started paging through some of the cookbooks collecting dust on my shelves when I saw that Top Chef got all fancy with it and made a “deconstructed falafel” with the falafel patty serving as the “bun” encasing a zucchini salad. I don’t really see the point of deconstructing food since I usually just reconstruct it before I eat it. So, by deconstructing it, you’re really just making more work for me. Thanks. However, this recipe differed in that it wasn’t so much a chickpea fritter as a chickpea patty, and they were pan-fried rather than deep fried. I could get on board with both of these things.
What ingredients do I need to make falafel?
30 ounces (2 cans) of chickpeas. If you want to cook yours from scratch, go ahead, but you are a better human than I (or at least a more ambitious one.
- parley, the fresh stuff
- garlic, also the fresh stuff
- flour. All-purpose is preferred, but I made these with GF flour and they came out fine
- almond flour
- cumin, crushed red pepper, S&P for flavor
- baking soda
- water and lemon to bring it all together
- olive oil, for the cooking part
I will disclaim that these are not as crispy as the falafels that you’d find at your neighborhood gyro stand. Duh– they’re not deep fried. However, the flavors were there and I liked them just fine. Easy, peasy, pleasy veg dish, and no doubt healthier than your neighborhood gyro stand.
Recipe adapted from the Top Chef cookbook
Falafel
Ingredients
- 2 can chick peas, drained (15-ounce can)
- 2 TB parsley, fresh
- 2 cloves garlic, fresh
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1 tsp crushed red pepper
- ½ lemon juiced
- 2 TB water
- ½ tsp baking soda
- 2 TB all-purpose flour
- ⅓ cup almond flour
- ⅓ cup olive oil for frying
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp coarse ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a food processor, combine the chickpeas, parsley, garlic, cumin, red pepper, salt and pepper and puree until smooth. Add the flour, baking soda, water and lemon juice and pulse to combine. Shape into 4-5 patties.2 can chick peas, drained, 2 TB parsley, fresh, 2 cloves garlic, fresh, 1 tsp cumin, 1 tsp crushed red pepper, 2 TB water, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 2 TB all-purpose flour, 1 tsp salt, 1 tsp coarse ground black pepper, 1/2 lemon
- Place the almond flour into a shallow dish. Dip each patty into the almond flour, coating each side thoroughly. Set the coated patties aside for 15 minutes.1/3 cup almond flour
- In a large skillet, heat about ¼ inch of oil over medium heat until hot. Add the patties and pan-fry until cooked through, crispy and nicely browned, about 5-6 minutes per side. Use your best judgment. Transfer to paper towels to drain. Serve immediately1/3 cup olive oil
