Tag: oven-baked falafel

These oven-baked falafel are super tasty, and my official taster is looking forward to eating them again! Deep-fried falafel are delicious, I don’t enjoy cooking with boiling oil, and I think baking is healthier.

This photo was taken before the tahini sauce, hot sauce and pickled turnips went on – oops! Somebody was eager for the photos to be done so the eating could begin. I’ve also served these with some hummus and a cucumber, tomato and herb salad.

I found an aleb falafel, a falafel shaping device, for under $10 at a local Middle Eastern store. You can use a spoon or your hands to form them if you don’t have an aleb falafel.

This recipe is especially easy to make if you have a food processor, but you could also give it a try with a potato masher. It’s quite simple: all the ingredients go into the food processor bowl, you whiz it up, form the balls, and bake them. While they are baking you can prepare sauce and veggies.

These falafel freeze quite nicely!

What you need for the falafel:

• 2 cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained, or equivalent home-cooked
• 3 large eggs
• 1/ 2 cup bread crumbs
• 1 large white onion, chopped
• 1 cup flat leaf parsley
• 1 cup cilantro (I like to use the stems too)
• 1 tablespoon crushed garlic
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 & 1/2 teaspoons cumin
• 1 teaspoon paprika or Aleppo pepper
• 1 teaspoon salt
• olive oil for brushing on top of falafel before baking

What you need for the tarator sauce:

• 1/2 cup tahini
• 1 teaspoon crushed garlic
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup lemon juice
• 1/4 to 1/3 cup water
• salt to taste

What you do for the falafel:

1. Heat the oven to 375F. Line a baking pan with parchment paper.
2. Add the chickpeas, eggs, bread crumbs, onions, parsley, cilantro and garlic to the bowl of the food processor and process until the mixture becomes doughy.
3. Add the baking powder, seasonings and olive oil and process again until all the ingredients are combined.
4. Form falafels with an aleb falafel (I lightly oiled mine before use), or scoop with a tablespoon and form into flattened balls with your hands.
5. Use a pastry brush to brush a little bit of olive oil on the tops of the falafel, to help them brown nicely. Browning = flavour!
6. Bake for about 25 minutes, then check to see if it is done; mine needed more time. You will know when it is done if a knife inserted in the centre comes out pretty much clean.
7. While the falafel are baking you can make the sauce.

What you do for the taratour sauce:

1. Mix the garlic in with the tahini.
2. Add a little bit of lemon juice and mix well. Add lemon juice and water a little at at time until the sauce is creamy but not too runny.
3. Add salt to taste.
4. Enjoy!!