By Brandon McDearis

This month’s recipe is an easy way to bring your favorite Greek restaurant home. However, if you want to skip the mess (and the fat) that goes along with frying, then just form the balls, flatten them a bit and lay them on a sheet pan. They can bake for about 20 minutes at 400 degrees until crisp on the outside and cooked through the middle. If you want to venture away from the Mediterranean, then this same method applies for making other veggie patties such as black bean burgers. The rest of the recipe should work well, but feel free to add other spices like ancho chile powder if you want more of a Southwest flavor. Two falafel balls is one serving or one larger patty if you want to go a bit bigger when shaping.

Falafel Ingredients:

  • 2 cups (1 can) chickpeas/garbanzo beans
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 small onion, finely diced
  • 6 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 teaspoons cumin
  • 1 teaspoons coriander
  • 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 2 tablespoons chopped parsley
  • 2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
  • Pinch of salt and pepper to taste
  • Vegetable oil, for frying

 

Tahini Sauce:

  • 1/2 cup tahini 
  • 1/2 cup plain yogurt or water
  • 1 lemon, juiced
  • 2 garlic cloves, chopped
  • 1/8 teaspoon paprika
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Pinch of chopped parsley

Combine all the ingredients in a blender and mix on high speed to make smooth and creamy. Adjust the seasoning as needed and drizzle over top of the falafels. (Yields about 1 cup.)

 

Preparation:

1. Put the chickpeas in a food processor and pulse until coarsely ground, but not until smooth. Add the baking powder, onion, garlic, spices, and herbs and process until the mixture is pureed. Scrape the sides of the bowl as needed, taste and season with salt and pepper, and transfer to a bowl and refrigerate for at least half an hour. 

2. Pour about 3 inches of the oil in a deep fryer or deep heavy pot and heat to 375 degrees.

3. Roll the falafel mixture into little balls, about the size of ping pong or golf balls (using the right size ice cream scoop here is helpful with consistency), and lay onto a pan. Carefully drop a few at a time into the hot oil, making sure they don’t stick to the bottom. Fry until the chickpea fritters are a crusty dark brown on all sides, turning as needed, about 3-5 minutes per batch. Remove the falafels with a slotted spoon and drain on a pan lined with towels or paper towels.

4. This recipe should make roughly 16 falafel, depending on the size of the balls rolled out. Serve with warm pita bread, shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, chopped cucumbers, tahini sauce, and a sprinkle of feta cheese.

Nutrition Facts (For 1 small patty):

Calories: 62 / Fat: 5g / Saturated Fat: 1g / Carbohydrates: 6g / Fiber: 3g / Protein: 2g


Chickpeas

Not only are chickpeas high in fiber, they are also a helpful source of zinc, folate, and protein. Chickpeas are low in fat, most of which is polyunsaturated. One hundred grams of mature boiled chickpeas contains 164 calories, 2.6 grams of fat (of which only 0.27 grams is saturated), 7.6 grams of dietary fiber, and 8.9 grams of protein. Chickpeas also provide dietary phosphorus (49– to 53 milligrams per 100 grams), with some sources citing its content as about the same as yogurt and close to milk. Recent studies have also shown that they can assist in lowering cholesterol in the bloodstream. 

Tahini

An excellent source of copper, manganese, and the amino acid methionine, tahini is also a source of the healthy fatty acids omega-3 and omega-6. Made from sesame seeds, tahini has relatively high levels of calcium and protein, which make it a useful addition to vegetarian and vegan diets as well as to raw food diets when eaten in its unroasted form, as tahini made from raw sesame seeds is lower in fat than tahini made from roasted seeds.

 

 

# # #

 

Brandon McDearis is a personal chef working in the Charlotte area. He currently owns and operates Your Way Cuisine, www.yourwaycuisine.com. In addition to his culinary training, Brandon also holds a bachelor of science degree in foods and nutrition, with a concentration in dietetics. He primarily focuses on healthy cooking and addressing specific dietary needs of everyone from professional and amateur athletes to busy families and elderly people. Brandon is also one of the board of directors for Wellspring International Outreach (www.wellspring-outreach.org) and works with a group of others to raise money for the abandoned children of Peru.