Fresh Falafel and Honeyed Root Vegetables

I love falafel. When it's made well it's hot and crispy on the outside with a tender inside. It's flavorful and delicious, light in your mouth, and perfect in pita. You can heap on your favorite Middle Eastern dips and toppings, such as baba ghanouj, hummus, and more. However, it's deep fried and hardly healthy.

Here, I take the classic dish and lighten it up. No deep frying, but still some light pan frying to crisp the edges. I pair it with a tahini sauce as well as fresh tomatoes, cucumber, and lettuce. The vegetables add some nutrition in place of oily dips and the pan frying saves oodles of fat. Yet the basic taste is remained. What's not to love?

In addition, I whipped up some roasted root vegetables coated in a delicate honey sauce. The natural sweetness comes through and with the light honey tastes absolutely perfect.

Difficulty: medium-easy
Time: 1 hr 40 min
Cost: $11.17

Nutrition and recipe below the jump!



Honeyed Root Vegetables
Time: 1 hr

Ingredients:
1.5 c turnips, peeled and cubed
1.5 c parsnips, peeled and cubed
1.5 c sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 c carrot, peeled and chopped
4 tbsp shallots, chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
4 tbsp honey
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp salt

Get your oven pre-heating to 450 degrees.

Put the turnips, parsnips, sweet potatoes, carrots, and shallots in a large bowl. Drizzle the olive oil and honey over the top. Toss until evenly coated in the liquids. Sprinkle on the black pepper and salt and toss again until evenly distributed.

Coat a 13x9 glass baking dish with cooking spray. Spread the vegetables evenly in the dish. Bake for 40 minutes, stirring halfway through.

Servings: 4
Serving size: about 1 1/4 cups
Nutrition: calories 235; carbs 44g; fat 7g; protein 2g; sodium 149mg; iron 6mg

Fresh Falafel
Time: 1 hr 40 min (1 hr for chickpeas)

Ingredients:
1.5 c chickpeas, dried (not canned)
2 c red onion, half diced and half sliced
5 tbsp lemon juice
1 tsp cumin, ground
1 tsp coriander, ground
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 tbsp olive oil
1/4 c breadcrumbs
4 tbsp tahini
8 small pita
1 c tomato, sliced
1 c cucumber, sliced

First, you'll need to ready your dried chickpeas. They take more preparation than canned ones, but the canned ones have a *lot* of added sodium whereas the dried ones do not. It's worth the effort! Follow the directions on the bag, but it'll probably involve boiling the beans and then letting them sit for about an hour.

Once the chickpeas are ready, put them in a food processor. Add 1 c diced red onion, 2 tbsp lemon juice, cumin, coriander, and 4 cloves of garlic. Process until smooth. Scrape the sides as needed to make sure it gets blended evenly.

Put the chickpea mixture into a large bowl. Pour the breadcrumbs into the bowl and mix gently.

Heat a pan over medium-high heat. Add 1 tsp of olive oil, swirling to coat. Split the chickpea mixture into thirds. Take one third and make patties that are about 1" thick with a 2" diameter. Place the patties into the pan. Cook for 2-3 minutes and then carefully flip. Cook for another 2-3 minutes or until lightly browned on each side. Repeat with the remaining two thirds of oil and mixture.

To eat, cut a pita in half. Put one patty in the pita, drizzle on some tahini, and add some of the remaining sliced red onion, sliced tomato, and sliced cucumber. Or, if it's too messy to pick up you can make an open faced sandwich like the one in the picture at the top. Enjoy!

While the falafel is cooking, prep the tahini. Pour 1 cup of hot water into a bowl. Add the tahini, the remaining 2 cloves of minced garlic, and the remaining 3 tbsp of lemon juice. Mix until well combined.

Servings: 8
Serving size: 1 pita with 2 patties
Nutrition: calories 381; carbs 59g; fat 10g; protein 15g; sodium 330mg; iron 27mg