Falafel

FALAFEL
Recipe by Martha Bisharat, Wardeh’s mom

My mom submitted this recipe to a newspaper’s cooking contest back in 1984 and she won first prize — $50. I have upped the seasonings a bit, but other than that, this is the same great recipe.

• 4 cups dry garbanzo beans
• 3 large onions
• 6 to 8 cloves garlic
• 2 bunches parsley, with stems removed
• 3 to 5 jalapeno peppers (optional)
• 2-1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 teaspoon pepper
• 5 teaspoons cumin
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 t baking soda (when ready to fry)
• expeller-pressed canola or grapeseed oil (for frying)
• Garnishes: whole wheat pocket bread, sliced tomatoes, sliced cucumbers, shredded greens, sliced avocados, sprouts

Soak the garbanzo beans in water overnight. Wash and drain. In an electric or manual meat grinder*, grind together the garbanzo beans, onions, garlic, peppers and parsley. Grind a second time. Add salt and pepper, cumin and baking powder and mix thoroughly.

When ready to deep fry, add the baking soda to the mixture and mix again. Shape the falafel mixture into patties which are 1 1/2 inch in diameter and 1/2 inch thick. You may also use a Pampered Chef small scoop to shape the balls easily. Deep fry the patties in hot oil until golden brown.

While the falafel is still warm, serve the patties in half rounds of pocket bread. Garnish with thinly sliced tomatoes, cucumbers, shredded greens and top with 2 tablespoonsful of tahini sauce.

*You may also use a food processor or Vita-Mix to grind the ingredients. Grind the ingredients separately. Do not puree the onions or the parsley, but keep them fairly chunky. Otherwise, the parsley is likely to turn the whole mixture green or the onions may make the mixture too watery. Add a small bit of flour or commercial falafel mix if too watery.

© 2007 by Martha Bisharat and Wardeh Harmon