falafel

I love falafel.  I'm pretty sure I could eat it everyday for a year and not get sick of it.  I could do it with pizza too, but this is much healthier and just as yummy.  This recipe is great because you can prep the falafel and stick it in the fridge in tupperware for up to a few days.  Then when you go make cook it it will only take 5 minutes.  Great for dinner in a hurry.

Although it tastes great by itself, you can serve falafel a number of different ways.  I like it in pita bread with sliced cucumbers and tomato.  Liam usually steals all my cucumbers so I cut up quite a few.  Jeff likes his in pitas too and smothered in cheese.  Well, he likes most things smothered in cheese...

I'm still not quite sure why I included this photo because I realized after I took it that I left out some of the ingredients in it.

Stir the ingredients to check that it has a smooth consistency before you remove it from your food processor.  The falafel should be the consistency of play dough.

In our house this is a fairly standard serving size for falafel.  Two small patties for each pita half.  I put two falafel patties in each pita half.  There are many add-in options.  My stand by is cucumber and tomato slices.  Jeff likes fresh spinach and shredded cheddar.

ingredients:
2 cans garbanzo beans, rinsed
2 tsp. olive oil, plus more for cooking can be substituted with vegetable oil
1 tbsp. cumin
1 tbsp. garlic
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. chili pepper
1 tbsp. lemon juice
1 small handful flat leafed parsley
1 small handful cilantro
1 egg
2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 C flour, plus more for shaping

directions:
1.  Add rinsed beans, 2 tsp. oil, cumin, garlic, salt, pepper, lemon juice, parsley, cilantro, egg, baking powder, and 1/4 C flour into your food processor.  Let it run until the ingredients are smooth.  Turn it off and run a spatula down the sides if need be.  If your consistency is too thick add a bit of water a teaspoon at a time, do the same with flour if it is too thin.  The desired consistency should be similar to play-dough.
2.  Scoop your falafel out into an air-tight container and put it in the fridge for at least 15 minutes.  You can leave it in your fridge for several days if you don't plan to use it all right away.
3.  Take the falafel out and shape small patties.  Dust them with flour and place in a lightly oiled frying pan on medium high heat.  You should be able to comfortably fit 4 patties in the pan at once.
4.  Keep an eye on your patties, they cook pretty quickly.  Turn them when they start to brown, and add more oil to your pan as needed.  I pop my pita in the microwave for 10 seconds when I flip my patties over so I can be ready to stuff the warm pita with falafel and veggies.  Serve them immediately.  The edges of the falafel should have a nice little crunch and still be hot.  Serves 4-6