BURGER-a-la-FALAFEL .... Chickpea Delight!

"The first wealth is health" 

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Sitting here the other day I was thinking of what to make over the weekend. Having just signed up for Ten in 10 for eating healthy (read more vegetarian food), my foodie resolutions hung like a sword over my head. Have to look for more fun vegetarian options to feed the kids, the question was how to make it fun and healthy. I was thinking pita bread and falafel, but the kids were thinking burgers!

Decided to meet half way through, and thought of falafel burgers. Hmmm, tweeted out sweet and affable Beth, a lady whose first love seems to be chickpeas, to ask of she had ever tried making them before. Incidentally, she is my chickpeas 101, and was last  reported soaking chickpeas for Mowie and Bruce!

Well, she hadn't heard of something of the sort, but she squealed with chickpea kinda joy, and booked 2 burgers for herself! These are for you Bethany...

I based the patty recipe on the earlier falafal recipe I had used. Added some sauteed garlic, garlic greens, spring onions & bell peppers to the chickpeas while grinding to a lovely texture. Also added some falafel mix that my niece had got me from Dubai. That is optional though. The burgers got their beautiful green colour from lots of fresh coriander. Great taste and a welcome change from chicken burgers. Ten in 10!!

Originally made with fava beans in Egypt, the dish later migrated northwards, where chickpeas replaced the fava. Falafel is made from fava beans or chickpeas or a combination of the two. The Egyptian variation uses fava beans exclusively, while other variations may use only chickpeas. Palestinians and Yemenite Jews in Jerusalem historically made their falafel from chickpeas and parsley only, as in Syria and Lebanon, and this continues to be how falafel is known throughout the Levant today.

Unlike many other bean patties, in falafel, the beans are not cooked prior to use. Instead they are soaked with bicarbonate of soda, then ground with the addition of a small quantity of onion, parsley, and spices such as cumin and coriander.

Falafel Patties
Adapted from Epicurious
1 cup dried chickpeas
2-3 stalks of garlic greens with stems
4 cloves of garlic
1 red bell pepper, chopped
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh coriander
1/2 large onion, roughly chopped (about 1 cup)
1 teaspoon salt
1/2-1 teaspoon dried hot red pepper
2 tsps falafel mix (optional)
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon baking powder
4 tablespoons flour

Vegetable oil for frying

Method:

Put the chickpeas in a large bowl and add enough cold water to cover them by at least 2 inches. Let soak overnight, and then drain. Or use canned chickpeas, drained.

Saute the garlic, garlic greens and red bell pepper in 1 tbsp oil till soft (4-5 minutes).

Place the drained, uncooked chickpeas and the onions in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Add the bell pepper mixture, coriander, salt, hot pepper, falafel mix and cumin. Process until blended but not pureed.

Sprinkle in the baking powder and 4 tablespoons of the flour, and pulse. You want to add enough flour so that the dough forms a small ball and no longer sticks to your hands. Turn into a bowl and refrigerate, covered, for several hours.

Form the chickpea mixture into patties, and shallow fry.

Use sandwiched in burger buns with a hung yogurt garlic dip, tomatoes, lettuce,onions etc.

Note: Use patties immediately as they tend to harden up as they stand. The burgers taste best fresh!

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