FOUR VERSIONS OF FALAFEL, (middle eastern vegie- hamburger!)

I.    The Israeli Version

 

Ingredients:

·   8 oz chick peas (not canned, please. See note at the end.)

·   3 Tablespoons Wheatmeal or Cracked wheat or Burguhl.

·   3 cloves garlic, minced

·   1 teaspoon cumin

·   2 tablespoon fresh coriander, chopped as fine as possible.

·   2 tablespoons flour

·   1 teaspoon salt

·   ¼ tsp. white pepper

 

Directions:

1.  Soak chick peas in water for 8 hours. Drain and grind.

2.  Soak Wheatmeal or substitute in water for 2 hours. Drain and grind.

3.  Mix all ingredients together.

4.  Form balls about ¾ inch diameter.

5.  Deep fry until golden brown (best fried in a net or a deep fryer).

6.  Serve in/with pita bread, Hummus, Tahini sauce, tomatoes-cucumbers-parsley-lemon juice salad. Save me some.

 

Note: It is possible to use canned chick peas. However, it is not as good, and you have to count more weight (because they are pre-cooked, and absorbed water)

II.   Falafel

 

Ingredients:

·   4 c. uncooked chickpeas

·   ¼ c. packed chopped cilantro

·   ¼ c. packed chopped parsley

·   3 T garlic (powder or chopped fresh)

·   ¼ onion

·   2 T olive oil

·   1 t. each salt & pepper

·   ¼ c tahini

·   ¼ c baking powder(optional)

 

Directions:

Soak beans overnight. Put all ingredients in a food processor and blend until it’s combined, Scraping down the sides as needed. don’t add any water or extra oil.

Bake or fry in olive oil until golden brown, take time so the insides are all cooked as well.

This recipe goes well with a simple tahini sauce.

III. Falafel

Ingredients:

·   1 ½ cup dried garbanzo beans

·   ¾ cup cilantro

·   2 jalapeno peppers

·   5-7 cloves garlic

·   ½ tsp cumin

 

Directions:

To serve: Ingredients:

·   4 pita breads with pockets,halved

·   lettuce, tomato, cucumber-chopped & mixed together with a pinch of salt

·   tahini

·   hot sauce (recipe follows)

 

Directions:

Soak the chick peas overnight. The next day, drain & blend together with the rest of the ingredients in a food processor till fine. Make into small patty shapes & shallow fry with very little oil. (Alternately, you can deep fry, if you can afford all that fat.)

Hot sauce: Put 1 tomato in hot boiling water for 1 min.Drain & peel. Chop roughly. Blend together, very well, with 2 or 3 garlic cloves, ¾ tsp chilli powder (or chilli paste is better), salt & very little sugar(if desired).

To serve: Break falafel balls into bite size pieces. Mix the salad with some tahini & add in the falafel pieces. (This way,you get the taste of falafel in every bite.) Stuff into the pita pockets & serve with the hot sauce & additional tahini.

Serves: 4-6.

Preparation time: 20 -30 mins.

IV.  Falafel

 

Ingredients:

·   2 ½ cups washed chickpeas

·   2 tsp baking soda

·   1 tsp crushed coriander seeds

·   1 tbs chopped coriander leaves (optional)

·   3 crushed garlic cloves

·   ¼ cup finely chopped parsley

·   1tsp ground cumin

·   ½ tsp cayenne pepper

·   2 tsp salt

·   ¼ tsp black pepper

·   ¼ cup flour

·   oil for frying

 

Directions:

Soak chickpeas overnight in 10 cups hot water and baking soda. Drain. Grind in a blender or food processor until fine. Add spices and flour.If mixture is too dry, add a few drops of water. Make small balls about 1 ¼ “ (3 cm) in diameter.Place on waxed paper or a greased baking sheet. Heat the oil and deep fry a few balls at a time for 2-3 minutes until golden brown.Drain on a paper towel. Keep balls warm. (Makes 60-70 falafel balls.) To serve: Stuff 6 balls in a fresh pita bread together with humus, tehina sauce, fresh vegetable salad and hot pepper sauce. Eat warm.

 

TEHINA SAUCE: Buy ready made tahini, like peanut butter really, but made of sesame seeds. Get it at any Iranian,Middle Eastern or Israeli market. Thin w. lemon juice til lighter, pourable. Add squeezed garlic, soy sauce. Chile Sesame oil.