Community Kitchen: Feast of Falafel

This week, I did my first Community Kitchen in over a month. A hiatus was nice as it gave other staff a chance to run the program and to expose the participants to different styles and flavours--in other words, it gave these gents (and the occasional lady) a break from cilantro and kale. On my end it was nice to replenish a bit.  Community kitchens can be a bit taxing, and there are few things worse than an exhausted and therefore uninspired facilitator ( my long stint taking university courses delivered by lack luster profs taught me at least that).



Our humble spread offsetting the institutional space a bit...

Some time away really helped me realize how much I love this program. In honour of the CK and all the people who have been regulars for almost two years we made an awesome falafel feast! This spread was such a hit that nobody asked for ice cream (one of my coworkers got them used to the good--and not so healthy--stuff in my absence.) And nobody asked "wheres the meat?" or even the cheese! Yes this meal is basically vegan (save for some homemade tzaziki,which can be replaced with tahini, hot sauce, baba ghanouj, hummus or anything at all) and nobody noticed! This version of the falafel is baked so it is also healthier in that respect. We ate ours in a whole wheat pita, but the falafel patties could easily be wrapped in collard or lettuce leaves, or served on top of a salad....I chose the bread option mainly because I didn't want to push it too much with my loyal crew.

Falafel: Makes 12 (cut recipe in half if serving a smaller group, or freeze patties)

2 cans or 1 cup of dry garbanzo beans (with 1/2 cup of water reserved)
1/2 cup of flour of your choice (i used chickpea)
1 tablespoon of baking powder
5 cloves of garlic
a few mint leaves (optional)
1/2 of a cup parsley
1 teaspoon of cumin
dash of cayenne
salt and pepper

Directions:

Turn over on to 350 degrees. Throw everything in a food processor or pound everything in a bowl with the back of a wooden spoon (if moisture is needed add a bit of water or reserved chickpea water.) Roll into ping pong-sized balls. Place balls on a baking sheet greased with coconut oil. Bake for 15-20 minutes (rotate mid-way) and put on broil for the last 5 minutes to achieve crispiness.

Tzaziki-ish:

2 cup Greek yogurt
1 small cucumber-shredded
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon cayenne
1 clove of garlic-minced
1/4 cup of dill-minced
1 small shallot sliced
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:

Throw everything in a bowl and take out your aggressions with your spoon by making circular gestures until everything is combined.

Sandwich assembly:

In wrap of your choice place shredded lettuce or greens of your choice, diced cucumbers, tomatoes and minced parsley. Top with two falafel balls and sauce. Bon appetit!

We also made a killer tabbouleh (I'll be sure to post the recipe soon), and some simple yet very tasty roasted vegetables...