Tried and True Falafel
I'm always looking for a meatless Monday recipe the whole family will enjoy. I love anything from anywhere around the Mediterranean, so of course I love falafel. What seems like it should be a simple dish, has crashed and burned despite the several different recipes I had tried. So when I came across this one from Downshiftology.com I was ready to give it one more try.
So it turns out what I had been doing wrong all along was using canned chick peas. Something about the starches is a no go. So, it does take some planning ahead to remember to start soaking the chick peas (aka garbanzo beans) the night before. Other than that, it's not a long process. And, it's something the kids can help with. Pretty much throw all the ingredients in the food processor, refridgerate 30-60 minutes then cook. I did pan fried this go round. It was 20 minutes of standing at the stove to get dinner ready. Next time I am going to try baking them so it will be less hands on time.
While it's an hour of time in the kitchen, the pay off is it makes a ton and we will get 2-3 meals easily out of a single batch. They freeze and reheat well too.
The other fun thing about falafel is it's basically a mediterranean sandwich. Meaning you can mix up the bread, condiments, toppings etc to fit anyone's pallet. I like naan bread but you can use pita, any kind of tortilla or wrap or even a lettuce wrap for the outside. I like tzatziki sauce which is a sour cream/dill/cucumber dressing familiar to gyros lovers. Grab this dairy free recipe or use hummus as a condiment. I like to use lettuce, tomato, sliced cucumber, sprouts, red onion as toppings. Really add whatever sounds good to you. Layer in your fresh falafel and you are ready to nosh.
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Dairy Free Tzatziki Sauce
5 oz plain plant yogurt (coconut) | 1 Tbsp lemon juice |
1/2 tsp Himalayan salt | 1/4 cup grated cucumber, squeezed to remove water |
1 tsp dried dill or 1 Tbsp fresh dill | 1/2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil* |
1 clove garlic minced* | 1 Tbsp fresh mint* |
*when I make a quick version I leave these ingredients out