Falafel Pitas (Light meals)

 

                    Falafel are spicy chickpea cakes. They are a popular street food all over the Middle East. Served with pita bread pockets with a colourful crunchy salad, they are deliciously healthy as well as fun to eat.

Serves 4

• 2 x 398 ml cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed 
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 5 ml ground cumin
• 5 ml ground coriander
• 1 green chili pepper, deseeded and finely chopped
• 30 ml chopped cilantro
• 1 small egg, beaten
• 30 ml all-purpose flour
• 30 ml canola oil
• 4 whole wheat pita breads
• ½ lemon, juiced
• 80 ml hummus

Salad

• 100 gr red cabbage, finely shredded
• 1 carrot, peeled and coarsely grated
• One-third English cucumber, cut into matchsticks
• 1 small red onion, thinly sliced

1. To make the falafel, put the chickpeas in a food processor and process until smooth ; add the garlic, cumin and ground coriander and process again until well mixed.
2. Add the chili pepper, cilantro, egg and 15 ml of the flour and process again briefly ; season to taste.
3. Transfer to a bowl and chill for about 30 minutes to firm the mixture. 
4. Meanwhile, to prepare the salad, put the cabbage carrot, cucumber and onion in a bowl and mix together.
5. Lightly floured our hands with the remaining flour and shape the chickpea mixture into eight patties.
6. Heat the oil in a frying pan and fry the patties, in patches if necessary, for about 3 minutes on each side until crisp and golden ; drain well on paper towel.
7. Meanwhile, warm the pita breads in a toaster or under the grill  and stir the lemon juice into the hummus to thin it lightly ; cut a slit lengthwise in the side of each bread to form a pocket.
8. Spread 15 ml of humus inside each pocket, ten stuff in two falafel with some salad ; serve immediately.

Each serving : 21 g protein, 17.5 g fat, 67 g carbohydrate, 19 g fibre, 547 Calories.

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