Whenever I see a boxed or canned version of a meal, it always makes me curious as to how it’s made. I used to have falafels when I was younger and they usually came in powder form. You simply added water and stirred it up. Most grocery stores now sell frozen falafel burgers or boxed falafels these days.
Falafels are a good option if you need to eat quickly and don’t want to eat fast food. They are served at many Greek, Turkish and Middle Eastern restaurants and take out stalls. You can usually even find them in a mall at the food court, and are pressed for healthy options. The problem with any “convenience” food is the usual issue…what exactly is going in them?
I haven’t checked the ingredients lately but boxed and frozen versions usually have to contain preservatives and artificial ingredients to keep the food “fresh”. I had leftover hummus (recipe is posted a few days ago) so I decided to make something that could accompany it.
Usually when I make a new dish, I look for a few different recipes on line. Then I take bits and pieces from each recipe and create my own version. I realized that chickpeas, parsley, turmeric and garlic were the main ingredients so I played around with a few options. Most recipes included flour as well which helps to bind the mixture together. Since I’m still on a detox, I bought chickpea flour so I could make it a gluten free meal.
Now I’ll recipize it for anyone who wants to try it…
Homemade Falafels
2 cans of chickpeas – 15 or 19 oz can (try to use organic so there aren’t perservatives)
1/4 cup shredded carrots
5 tbsp fresh parsley
3 tbsp fresh cilantro (corriander)
3-4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
1 egg (free range)
1 tsp ground corriander
1 tsp turmeric
1 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp paprika
1/2 cup whole wheat flour (chickpea or brown rice flour if gluten free)
3 tbsp olive oil
Mix all of the ingredients together except the last two (the flour and the olive oil). Blend in a a food processor then transfer into a mixing bowl. Add the flour in and mix up with the blended ingredients. Form balls or burgers and fry in a pan with olive oil.
