About the Recipe
Ingredients
Falafel
1 cup dried chickpeas (must be dried and not canned)
1/2 cup fresh flat leaf parsley
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
1/4 cup of onion
5 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup chickpea flour (or all purpose)
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp cumin
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 cup safflower or vegetable oil
Platter
3 cups mixed greens
1/2 English cucumber
1/2 cup sliced Kalamata olives
1 cup grape tomatoes
1/2 onion
1/2 block of feta
1/2 cup fresh flat leaf parsley
1/4 cup fresh cilantro
1 cup of hummus (store bought or see recipe below)
1 cup tzatziki (store bought or see recipe below)
Hummus
2 cans chickpeas
2 cloves of garlic
1/4 cup of onion
1 cup fresh flat leaf parsley
1/2 cup fresh cilantro
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/2 cup olive oil
juice of half a lemon
Tzatziki
1/2 English cucumber
juice of 1/2 a lemon
2 cloves of finely chopped garlic
2 cups plain Greek yogurt
2 TBSP finely chopped dill
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp white pepper (black pepper is fine)
Preparation
Falafel
soak the chickpeas overnight (at least 16 hours, but 24 hours is best)
drain and rinse the chickpeas then add to food processor
roughly chop parsley, cilantro, onion, and garlic then add to food processor
add coriander, cumin, salt, and pepper to food processor
blend until all ingredients are chopped finely (but not pureed, it should be a crumbly)
prepare a baking sheet lined with parchment paper
add flour & baking powder to mixture and stir in to combine
scoop out about 1 1/2 tbsp of the mixture, form into a ball, place on baking sheet until all mixture is used
put baking sheet in refrigerator for about 20 minutes or until you prepare the rest of the platter
fill frying pan with about 2 inches of oil over medium-high heat
slowly add falafel to the hot oil
fry on the first side for about one minute or until golden brown, flip and fry for an additional minute or two until golden brown and cooked through
remove from oil and put on a plate lined with paper towels
Platter
add the mixed greens to a platter
slice the half cucumber in half lengthwise, use a spoon to scrape the seeds out, thinly slice into half moons and add to the platter
add the Kalamata olives to your platter
slice the grape tomatoes in half and add them to the platter
thinly slice onion and add to platter
crumble the feta on top
roughly chop the parsley and cilantro, add it to the platter
add the falafel to the platter
add a large scoop of hummus and tzatziki to opposite ends of the platter
serve in a beautiful bowl & enjoy!
Hummus
drain and rinse to cans of chickpeas, add to food processor
roughly chop onion, garlic, parsley and cilantro, add to food processor
add cumin, coriander, salt, pepper, olive oil, and lemon juice to the food processor
mix until smooth adding a bit more olive oil needed
Tzatziki
open a tea towel or cheese cloth in a bowl
using a grater shred the cucumber into the bowl over the towel
squeeze out any excess liquid from the cucumber into the bowl through the towel
discard the liquid and put the cucumber in the bowl
add the remainder of the ingredients to the bowl
stir until well combined