Healthy Baked Falafels

Falafel is a food I personally LOVE. Due to the chickpeas they are a good source of fibre and plant-based protein which may help curb appetite, support healthy blood sugar, and lower the risk of chronic disease. There’s also health benefits in the herbs such as Vitamin A, C & K in the fresh parsley. However, it’s traditionally deep fried in oil which can add unnecessary and potentially harmful fats to the diet. I wanted to find a way to enjoy these and also make them healthy by baking them instead of frying.

Ingredients:

• 200g dried chickpeas, soaked for 10-12 hours

• 1/2 large red onion

• 3 large garlic cloves

• 45g fresh parsley

• 10g fresh coriander

• 1 tsp cumin

• 1 tsp salt

• 1 tbsp fresh lemon juice

• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon

• 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

• 1/2 tsp chilli powder

• 1/2 tsp baking powder

• Dash of black pepper

Method: 

1. Make sure to soak the dried chickpeas in water the night before you plan to make these. Soak for 10 - 12 hours making sure the water covers the chickpeas by a few inches as they will double/triple in size.

2. When they have doubled in size, drain and rinse the chickpeas and add them to your food processor and blend until course. Add all the other ingredients to the food processor and blend until well combined but still grainy.

3. Add the mixture to a bowl adding in the baking soda. Stir the mixture, cover and place in the fridge for 30 minutes.

4. Remove from the fridge and use your hands to form the falafel into balls. Lightly brush the falafels with a little extra virgin olive oil.

5. Preheat the oven to 230 degrees C (210 in a fan oven), or 200 degrees in an air fryer. Place the falafel on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes, then flip and place back in for another 10 minute until golden and crispy on the outside.

6. Serve the falafel immediately. You can include a wholemeal pita or just bowl style with some tahini lemon dressing or hummus, fresh shredded greens, red cabbage, cucumber & tomato.