The prettiest meal prep bowl.
When falafel is made the traditional way, it's actually vegan - and it’s a great source of protein for those who have cut meat out of their diet. While I am not vegan, far from it actually, I do like to keep one of my meals each week vegan. I meal prep, so this means that either my lunch or dinner for the whole week is vegan.
It's also vegan because I can't/don't eat any of the typical vegetarian foods like dairy or eggs. Traditionally, this dish is served with pita, but we all know that I can't eat that, so I opted for rice instead.
As I mentioned in a post a few days ago, I've been kind of obsessed with the new Jerusalem cookbook. This means that I've been dreaming of hummus and chickpea type everything foods. In the past, I've made a Curried Falafel using turmeric, but this week I decided to go back to the basics.
I also think that this is one of the prettier meal preps that I've done. Just look at all of those colors! K I'll stop...
What if you want to make the falafel mixture ahead of time?
You can! By resting the mixture overnight, it actually helps when it comes to forming the balls. I'd say that you could make the mixture up to 3 days in advance. Just make sure to refrigerate it in an airtight container until ready to use so that it doesn't dry out.
You'll also notice in this dish that there's quite a bit of olive oil. Usually falafel is deep fried in it, but personally I don't see the health benefits of frying food... *sarcasm* So for this, we're baking it. That being said, I think that olive oil is an essential component of this dish, and I had to include it. It also has quite a few health benefits.
Olive oil is high in monounsaturated fats, which also means that it's anti inflammatory.
Olive oil helps to maintain healthy cholesterol levels. In a Japanese study, results showed that LDL-cholesterol (low-density lipoprotein aka "bad cholesterol") concentrations fell in 28 subjects who took olive oil supplements once a day for 6 weeks.
When shopping for olive oil, make sure to get the right (real) kind!
Extra virgin olive oil keeps the antioxidants and bioactive compounds from olives. For this reason, it’s considered healthier than the more refined types of olive oil.
Even so, there is a lot of fraud on the olive oil market (as with honey). Many oils that claim to be "extra virgin" on the label have been diluted with other refined oils.
So if you have the right *REAL* kind of olive oil, please feel free to sprinkle (drizzle) it liberally on all your food.
BAKED FALAFEL BOWLS
Serves 5
INGREDIENTS
For the falafel
1 15-oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1/2 onion, roughly chopped
2 tbsp. freshly chopped parsley
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. ground coriander
1/2 tsp.cardamom
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 cup chickpea flour*
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
For the bowl
1 cup uncooked brown rice
5 tbsp hummus
Tomatoes, diced
Cucumber, diced
1/4 cup red onion, finely chopped
2 cups shredded lettuce
Pickled beets
Olive oil
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat oven to 425 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a food processor fitted with a metal blade, combine chickpeas, garlic, onion, parsley, cumin, coriander, cardamon, cayenne pepper and flour and season with salt and pepper. Blend until mixture resembles a thick paste.
Form mixture into falafel balls about 2" in diameter.
Place the falafel balls onto the baking sheet and bake for 20 minutes. Flip and bake for an additional 5 minutes.
While the falafel are baking, In a pot, cook the rice on low heat until done. Drizzle with a little olive oil and put aside.
To assemble, divide the ingredients among 5 plates.
Serve falafels on the rice. Top with the pickled beets and hummus.
Place the lettuce, tomatoes, red onion and cucumber on the side to form a salad and drizzle with olive oil. Add black pepper and salt to taste.
Serve and enjoy!
NOTES
*You can sub for regular all purpose or gluten free flour if you'd rather.
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