2016/09/16

HEALTHIER SPINACH FALAFEL - baked not fried


I have never been a big fan of falafel, back in school it was served tasteless and with basically no spices. This experience made me very skeptical for years, until I tried it in a simple, probably very unhealthy takeaway - all it needs is a bit of spice to it! Now as I learned how easy it is to do it yourself and I have it at least once a week. It is so convenient you can make it into little bites, like the once I did for this recipe, or into burgers. 




Falafel can be made with so many variations, with spinach, plain, with peppers, olives literally whatever you fancy and therefore it does not get boring quickly. It is the biggest alternative for vegetarians in so many places, sometimes so over priced thus I reckon it is good to know how to make it at home. Besides that, chickpeas are very high in protein and fiber - best of both worlds. In addition it has a low GI (=30) so it is safe for diabetic and the fiber itself regulates glucose level in the blood. 




Ingredients

  • 300 g chickpeas
  • 1 tbsp of ground cumin
  • 1 tbsp of paprika
  • 1 tbsp of garlic powder
  • 3 cloves of garlic
  • 1 small onion
  • 1 tbsp of coriander
  • 1 handful of spinach
  • 2 tbsp of coconut oil (vegetable, sunflower or olive oil will do)



Procedure

1. If using dry chickpeas make sure to soak them in water for 12h. If using canned rinse well to get rid of excess salt.
2. Add all the ingredients to a food processor or use a hand blander and mix everything well until semi smooth paste.
3. Preheat oven to around 180 degrees, make sure the fan is off.
4. Form the chickpea paste into desired shape, I made small falafel bites.
5. Place on a baking tray, optional coat falafel in sesame seed, bake for around 20 minutes until golden brown on the outside but moist inside. Let it rest for a few minutes and enjoy easy and quick falafels!















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