Main Meals · Sandwiches · Vegetarian

Extra Minty baked Falafels

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Extra Minty baked Falafel, as its name says, is a super refreshing vegetarian bite. Served with mini pita breads, a low fat extra cucumber tzatziki and some extras of avocado, tomato, lettuce and onion sprouts. A healthy to the core vegetarian dish! Extra Minty baked Falafel, as its name says, is a super refreshing vegetarian bite with a extra fresh touch. Served with mini pita breads, a low fat extra cucumber tzatziki and some extras of avocado, tomato, lettuce and onion sprouts. A healthy to the core vegetarian dish!

Extra Minty Baked Falafel

I love making those, they fulfill your needs, plus the extra mint makes them extra flavourful and fresh. On the plus side, they are baked and won’t suck all that oil they do when fried. I like to make my falafels slightly chunkier with pieces of chickpeas, but if you like it finer well simply grind it a tad more, feel free to make it your way. Each time I’ve add a great falafels it would strangely be in a food truck or a fair and usually made with  extra fresh herbs (mint or cilantro), I love this bite of freshness through all those other spices. Mint or cilantro or both even is a great green factor to add to your falafels, I believe it really bring them up on the flavour scale.

Chickpeas

Extra Minty Baked FalafelChickpeas has been cultivate since 7000 BC, such an old bean! Without saying it’s health properties are as long as they are old. Let’s just name a few; lower bad cholesterol, filled with fibres, minerals, vitamins and proteins, help regulate blood pressure, etc. In other words, chickpeas will bring you to your old days healthy. I, personally, always had a “certain”problem with beans in general, I believe it’s the “sandy” texture that turned me off, but knowing it was a “must have” for my health, I’ve started experimenting more and more with all kinds of beans. It also helps to live in Catalonia, Spain because it’s full of different types here. This recipe for instance was another of those attempt to cut on the meat and fill up my proteins need with beans, now I make those chickpea balls every other week. If you are like me and want to make alternative meals … not facts… to meat dishes this is a great way. Plus, it’s fun to pair it with all kind of sides, sauces and breads.

The sides

Extra Minty Baked Falafel

Falafels goes everywhere and with anything, whether it’s on top of a salad, on rice, in a pita bread or even tortilla bread. My own personal favorite is in small pita breads with lots of veggies. If you want to make your own pitas check out the recipe from a fellow food blogger, Sarah James from Tales From The Kitchen Shed here. As for the sides, I always enjoy to add a plate filled with veggies for this particular extra minty version I’ve added lettuce, tomato, avocado, onions sprout to accompany it. I also enjoy adding an extra sauce, sometimes I simply use a mustard-mango sauce or simple tahini but for this version I’ve used one of my favorite: extra cucumber tzatziki, check my recipe Tzatziki a la Maria-Pia. This sauce is great because it’s low in calories, sodium and fat and extra smooth and flavorful.

So enough bla bla… let’s get to it!

 

Extra Minty Baked Falafels

Makes about 15 falafels | Preparation: 10 minutes | Cooking time: 20 minutes

Ingredients
Falafels
  • baked falafel healthy mint and tzatziki vegetarian400g pre cooked chickpeas 
  • 1 onion
  • 2 garlic clove 
  • 1 tbsp of tahini
  • 2 full hands of fresh mint
  • 1 tsp of cumin
  • 1/2 tsp of sweet paprika
  • 1/2 tsp of powdered coriander
  • 50g of chickpea flour
  • 10 drops of tabasco *optional
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tbsp olive oil
  • bread crumbs *optional
  • salt and pepper
Sides
Directions
  1. In a blender blend the garlic cloves, onion, chickpeas and the mint into a rough paste
  2. Add the tahini, the spices, chickpea flour, olive oil, tabasco, egg to the chickpea paste and mix well (don’t be shy use those hands)
  3. Add the salt and pepper
  4. Form with the hand small balls of 5 cm and add to a baking sheet covered with a baking paper
  5. Cover the falafel with a few bread crumbs just to add a touch of crunch *optional
  6. Once all formed, cook in the oven at 180°C (350F) for 20 minutes, turn mid way
  7. Serve with small pita bread, some extra avocado, tomatoes, onion sprouts and a extra cucumber tzatziki (recipe here)

 

Enjoy!

Extra minty baked falafel

31 thoughts on “Extra Minty baked Falafels”

  7. That meal looks great. I love falafel and make them at home as well. My favorite veggies to include are iceberg lettuce, tomatoes, and extra tahini sauce 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

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