Falafels are a plant-based street food from the Middle East. It’s made from ground up chickpeas (garbanzo beans), fava beans, and spices like parsley, garlic, cumin, and coriander. I couldn’t find any raw garbanzo beans to grind up, so I used a falafel mix. They’re traditionally deep-fried, but baked falafels taste delicious too!
Ingredients
1 box Trader Joe’s falafel mix
2 1/4 cups water
Olive oil for brushing on top
1/2 onion, chopped
4 cluster tomatoes, chopped
4 small cucumbers, chopped
2 sprigs each fresh thyme and oregano, chopped (dried would work too)
Salt and pepper to taste
Tahini sauce from this recipe
Directions
In a medium-sized bowl, combine the falafel mix and water. Cover and let it sit for 1 hour at room temperature (package directions). Then use your hands to shape the mixture into 12 balls and place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Gently brush the tops with a little bit of olive oil.
In a medium bowl, mix the onion, cucumber, tomato, fresh herbs, salt and pepper. Toss thoroughly with two large spoons. Set aside for the flavors to combine.
Bake the falafels at 350F for 25-30 minutes until the tops get nice and golden. (You could also fry them if you prefer). Cool for 2-3 minutes, then serve with the salad, some cooked rice or pita bread, and tahini sauce (ketchup and mayonnaise could work too in a pinch).
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