crispy baked falafel

I have avoided cooking veggie burgers since attempting them with with my mom wh

When I was eight years old, I told my mom I didn't want to eat the McDonald's burger she had just handed me. She said I didn't have to eat it, so I began taking the meat off of everything and declared myself a vegetarian. She begrudgingly got on board and bought a vegetarian cookbook. Some recipes went well, and I still make versions of them today. The veggie burger recipe, however, was a disaster. We couldn't get the patties to stay together, and it required more breadcrumbs than any healthy dish should. I've avoided all veggie patty/ball/cake recipes since.

This week, I faced my fears (with the guidance of Minimalist Baker's black bean falafel recipe) and will now be making these any time I have leftover cooked grains. These are also easy to freeze and reheat, so go ahead and make a double batch.

This falafel is delicious with my herby avocado hummus or guacamole, but the sky is really the limit. You can swap out the beans and spices to sway the recipe in so many different directions. Black beans with mole instead of harissa makes a hearty taco filling. White beans paired with Italian seasoning and a tomato sauce yields a meatball-esque variation. Edamame + chili lime seasoning with a peanut coconut dipping sauce strays toward Thai influences. Stuff them in spring rolls or on top of rice noodles. Or go traditional with chickpeas + Greek seasoning or za'atar with classic hummus and/or tzatziki in a pita.

ingredients:

1 can kidney beans, drained & rinsed (can sub any canned beans)

1/4 cup roasted sunflower seeds (can sub pumpkin seeds, walnuts, or pecans)

1 cup cooked & cooled quinoa (can sub rice or other grain)

2 tbs harissa (can sub tomato paste or mole)

2 tbs coconut aminos (can sub soy sauce)

4 cloves of garlic

1 tsp crushed red pepper

1 tsp taco seasoning

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

1/2 tsp sea salt

prep:

1. preheat oven to 350F

2. bake beans on a lined baking sheet for ~15 minutes, until beans are dry and start to crack.

3. remove beans and increase oven to 375F

4. add beans and seeds to a food processor and pulse to combine

5. add the remaining ingredients and pulse to form a dough (I like to keep some of the seeds whole and beans visible, so do not fully puree). add water 1 tbs at a time if too crumbly

6. scoop 1-2 tbs of the mixture and shape into disks

7. bake on a lined baking sheet for 15 minutes, then flip and cook for another 10 or until browned & crispy on both sides

8. serve with sauce of choice, either as a dipped starter, on a salad, on a sandwich, or in a pita/taco/wrap

#beans #quinoa #glutenfree