FALAFEL

This was adapted from a couple of recipes on Epicurious, with reviewers advice taken as well, as I continued on the Greek theme. I sold this to my kids as “fried hummus balls” and it went over pretty well. Morgan chowed; Audrey said, “Oh, I like these, I had them at Lainey’s”. She ate quite a few bites before dumping them out and eating the pita bread. I think she thought they were meatballs. Oh well.

1 15 oz. can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
¼ cup onion, preferably sweet
2 - 4 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cumin
½ teaspoon coriander
pinch of chile powder
several shakes of paprika
1 egg
¼ cup cornmeal
olive or canola oil for frying

Pita bread
tahini or TSATZIKI sauce
lettuce, tomatoes or other accompaniments of choice

Put about half of the chickpeas in the bowl of a food processor and process until almost pureed. Add onions, garlic, herbs and egg and process until well mixed. Add the rest of the chickpeas and pulse until it forms a sticky paste. It should be a little bit chunky. Turn into a bowl and refrigerate, covered for a couple of hours.
Pour oil until it covers the bottom of a deep sauté pan. You can fill it a bit deeper if you want them more deep fried. Heat oil medium high. Form falafel dough into balls, about the size of a walnut and fry in the oil. Try one first. If it falls apart, stir some more cornmeal into the dough. After the tester, fry 6 – 8 at once, leaving a bit of space between them. Turn so that each side browns well and then remove to paper towels to drain. Serve hot or room temperature.

Meanwhile, heat the pitas in a warm oven. I served with halved cherry tomatoes and lettuce and tsatziki. Thinned tahini (sesame seed paste, available at TJ’s) is a good sauce as well. For lunch the next day, I warmed a few falafel balls in the toaster oven with a pile of leftover grilled veggies and a half a pita and that made a great sandwich as well.

Reviewers of this recipe have said that the dough keeps well in the refrigerator, for frying up later in the week.