Falafel

1¼ cups (dry) chickpeas, cooked
½ cup onions, chopped
½ cup carrots, chopped
1 - 2 fresh jalapenos, chopped
1 head roasted garlic ~or~ two to five cloves toasted garlic, minced
½ cup bread crumbs
¼ - ½ cup parsley, chopped
2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. coriander
½ tsp. baking soda
¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
2 tsp. dry mustard
½ tsp. turmeric
2 tbsp. lemon juice
2½ tbsp. flour

Once chickpeas are cooked, puree half of them into a fine paste (either in a food processor, or finely mash them by hand). Sauté the onions, carrots and jalapenos on low heat for 20 to 30 minutes. Puree these with the other half of the chickpeas and the garlic to a rough crumb-like texture. Mix the remaining ingredients in by hand. Form mixture into 4 - 6 patties and pan fry at medium to medium-high heat in a tablespoon or two of canola oil for each side, until each side is well crisped, about three to five minutes per side.

Serve in pita bread with your choice of toppings (I like lettuce, tomato, black olives, feta and roasted red pepper). Tahini-Lemon sauce is mandatory.

 

Tahini, Lemon and Yogurt Sauce

Mix almost equal proportions tahini and plain yogurt together, with the tahini having the larger proportion. Add lemon juice, salt and pepper to taste.