Happy Meatless Monday friends! Bringing you a recipe for one of my favorite meatless meals, Falafel.

The first time I had falafel was sadly just a few years ago.

But it was love at first bite.

I love that falafel can take so many forms, and can give you something hearty without being meat. It’s good to replace meat on salads, sandwiches, wrap, pitas…. or have just as it is. When I had this recently again as street food in New York and the hubby liked it just as much as I did, I knew that it was something I wanted to try and make for a yummy meatless meal to rotate into our line up.

When I made it fresh myself, it juts confirmed my love for these veggies patties. They are WAY better made fresh than from anywhere, and this recipe is DIALED IN to bring you full flavor because, you know, I think I kinda like you guys 😉

I feel like Falafel sounds intimidating, but its actually pretty easy and just takes a little extra prep to make….. you have to soak dried chickpeas in water for 12-24 hours. PLEASE don’t let that discourage you from this recipe because while yes, its an additional step you have to actually prepare for, it’s a really easy step. Also, don’t think you can bypass this step by using canned chickpeas (which is literally a lecture I just gave my mother), this will ruin your mixture. The canned chickpeas have too much moisture in them and you will never be able to form patties/balls. So do it as it says, and you’ll be surprised how easy it actually is to make these.

 

 

Though that’s not something I routinely practice, I definitely understand the appeal and logic behind Meatless Mondays. First off, by committing to at least one less meat meal a week, we are doing our part in reducing our carbon footprint and saving precious resources like fossil fuels and fresh water (yep all that folks). It also reduces your chance of chronic preventable diseases like cancer, cardiovascular diseases, diabetes and obesity. Hopefully you’re eating mostly organic meats when you are consuming it, so those last bits are at a much lower chance in general, but just in case, again just a good idea to challenge yourself to change it up. Lastly, putting one less protein on your grocery list will definitely help your weekly budget and for some newlyweds saving up for a house, that’s definitely reason enough.

 

These make a good amount so you can save the mixture and make them fresh again later in the week. When hubby and I had them we put them with some roasted red potatoes and stuffed them into pitas with kale, cucumber, bell pepper and my homemade tzatziki and YALL. IT. WAS. GOOD.

Please try these out and please report back with how much you loved them.

 

XO,

JESS

 

 

FALAFEL FROM SCRATCH

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup dried garbanzo beans (soak them in 6 cups of water for 12-24 hours)
• 1 bunch parsley
• 1 small yellow onion, chopped
• 6 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 teaspoon each cumin and salt
• 1 teaspoon each coriander and black pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne
• 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• Zest of half a lemon
• 2-4 tablespoons all purpose flour
• Oil for frying (I use canola or vegetable oil)

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Drain garbanzo beans and dry them completely with a paper towel or kitchen towel.
2. Transfer garbanzo beans and all ingredients except for the flour into a food processor.
3. Pulse ingredients in food processor until they breakdown as seen in pictures above. Be careful to not to over pulse it and turn it into a paste.
4. Transfer mixture into a bowl and start by adding 2 tablespoons of flour. Stir to combine.
5. Try to form balls or patties (whichever you prefer) with the mixture. If it does not hold well, add the remaining amount of flour and mix to combine.
6. Let mixture sit for about ten minutes and then start forming your patties or balls (I prefer patties because they are easier for making wraps/pitas).
7. Heat 1-inch of oil in a skillet pan to medium heat. Gently place patties into the oil frying on each side for about 3-4 minutes on each side or until brown and crispy. Patties will be fragile at first, so make sure to be careful as you are flipping them.
8. Trial one to make sure its cooked well and flavors are perfect.
9. Serve on top of salad or in pita shell with bell peppers, greens, cucumbers and my favorite tzatziki