THE TRAVELLING VEGAN: Warming Spiced Winter Falafel Recipe

THE TRAVELLING VEGAN: Warming Winter Falafels

Falafels

These baked Falafels have a crunchy outside and are fluffy on the inside. The spicy harissa paste and cayenne pepper add a nice little twist to the traditional version.

More About Mia and her Soulful Food...

Hi, I'm Mia, veg and fruit lover extraordinaire. My plant-based journey started with a love for this planet and everyone who's living on it. Through travel, experimenting, and a lot of curiosity, I have discovered just how easy, accessible, and simple (yet diverse, tasty and nutritious!) vegan food can be. It is very important to me that my diet supports all my nutritional needs, and so my recipes focus on finding ways to this whilst also tasting scrumptious!

What I love the most about cooking is the community aspect of it. The joy and comfort of gathering and sharing – how it brings everyone together. My regular recipes and posts are to do just this! I will be sharing my favourite tasty and healthy vegan meals and treats with you. And I hope that you will enjoy looking after yourself by eating them, and of course sharing them with your own tribe, large or small.

Wishing you lots of love, health and happiness, Mia xx

Falafels

Falafels and the Arabian cuisine, in general, are known for its richly flavoured dishes incorporating lots of fresh herbs such as parsley, coriander and mint.

Coriander is a herb that’s commonly used to flavour international dishes.

It is rich in immune-boosting antioxidants and neuroprotective effects. It is also said to reduce unpleasant digestive symptoms like bloating and discomfort often experienced by people with Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

To bring out the tanginess of the falafels, even more, we use cayenne pepper. Many people consider cayenne peppers to be the ‘king of medicinal herbs’. It has been used for thousands of years to help many health problems. The Capsaicin (active ingredient of chilli peppers) in Cayenne Peppers may help boost metabolism and unclog your nose, making it an important addition to everyone’s winter spice-rack.

Chickpeas are the main ingredient of falafels. They are protein packed, of sweet flavour, beneficial to stomach and heart containing more iron than other legumes, plus they are a great source of unsaturated fats.

Falafels

Ingredients

(makes about 18 falafels)

3 cups of dried, raw chickpeas (must be “activated” overnight or ideally 24 hours before by soaking in water with 1T of lemon juice or apple cider vinegar)
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp harissa paste
1 onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves
1/2 cup fresh coriander leaves
5 cloves of fresh garlic finely chopped
2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tsp tapioca flour (optional)

Preparation

Preheat your oven to 180°C with the oven rack in the middle position, and thinly coat a baking tray with olive oil in preparation.
In a bowl/food processor, combine the soaked and drained chickpeas, onion, herbs, garlic, spices, salt & pepper. Process and blend until smooth, slowly adding in lemon juice, olive oil & harissa paste.
The starch releasing from the chickpeas should be enough to bind all ingredients, but if the dough is still very crumbly add 1 tsp of tapioca flour.
Use your hands and shape the falafel into small patties, ideally about 2cm wide and 1 cm thick. Lay them on your prepared baking tray.
Place in the centre of your preheated oven and bake for about 15-20 minutes, then remove the tray from the oven and gently flip each one.
They should be golden brown on the underside. Return to the oven and bake for another 10 minutes, or until they are golden brown on both sides.
Once cooked, serve with hummus, pita bread and loads of fresh salad, or even pre-roasted veggies.
The falafels can be eaten straight away, frozen to eat later of stored in the fridge and eaten later either warm or cold (please ensure you reheat thoroughly).