Recipe. You Won't Want to Miss This!

Baked Falafel with Tahini Sauce

These falafel are so light and delicious, and vegan!

Falafel
1 15 oz. can of chickpeas, rinsed and drained
½ cup fresh parsley leaves (you can also use cilantro if preferred or a mix of parsley and cilantro)
½ small-medium red onion, chopped
2 cloves of garlic
½ lemon, juiced
½ tsp. lemon zest
3 tbsp. panko
¾ tsp. dried oregano
¾ tsp. paprika (I use sweet Hungarian)
¾ tsp. cumin
1 tbsp. nutritional yeast
Salt and black pepper to taste (I use a couple of shakes of red pepper sauce or sriracha in place of black pepper.)

Pita bread
Chopped salad with ingredients of your choice such as baby lettuces, cucumbers, olives, tomatoes, avocado, red onion slices.

Tahini Sauce
¼ cup tahini
¼ cup water
1 tbs. sriracha
1 tbs. lemon juice
1 clove garlic

Note: this sauce also makes a great salad dressing—with a little thinning with a neutral oil, such as avocado oil.

Make the sauce first so that the flavors can meld in the refrigerator. Place the tahini sauce ingredients in your food processor. Pulse until smooth. Place in container and refrigerate, taking out to come to room temperature, about 20 minutes, prior to use.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Prepare a cookie sheet with a layer of parchment. Wipe the bowl of your food processor from making the tahini sauce, but really no need to wash. Add all the falafel ingredients except the red onion, to the food processor, and mix until beans are chopped and the ingredients are beginning to form a dough consistency. If it seems too thick, add a little water at a time, until it forms a “ball.” Add red onion and pulse a couple of times until mixed through.

Using a teaspoon as a guide for the amount, form a heaping tsp. of mixture into a ball and place onto the cookie sheet, pressing it flatter—it will be about 1/3 inch thick and oval; continue making the small ovals until all the mixture is used up—about 12+ falafel.

Bake for approximately 20 minutes. You can turn halfway through, but they turn out fine if you don’t—I don’t. They are light golden brown when baked.

While the falafel is in the oven, prepare the chopped salad ingredients.

On each plate, add 3-4 falafel, chopped salad, a dollop of tahini sauce, and ½ a pita round, allowing each person to assemble as they like.

This recipe could serve four, but more likely 3, as larger appetites will eat 4 falafel and 2 filled pitas—first hand experience provides this information.

Note: This recipe was adapted from one I read some time ago in a vegan cookbook, but I regret that I don’t recall which one to credit! When I find it again, I will add as the origin, and also as a resource for those interested in incorporating more vegetarian meals into their diet.