Name: Black bean falafels
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 30 min
Ingredients: 1 cup drained cooked chickpeas; 1 shallot or 3 spring onions; 2 cloves of garlic; ½ tsp oregano; 1 tsp ground cumin; 1 tsp ground coriander; 1 tsp salt; ½ tsp ground pepper; 1 tsp chipotle paste; 1 Tbsp tomato purée; 1 cup drained black beans (from tin); 2 Tbsp chopped coriander leaves; 1 Tbsp ground flaxseed mixed with 3 Tbsp water; 1 Tbsp chickpea flour

Black bean falafels

22 Oct 2019

by Wholeness

Prep Time

15 minutes

Cook Time

15 minutes

Total Time

30 minutes

Background

I make my own falafels once a week, so I like experimenting with different ingredients. This time I combined chickpeas with black beans and added Mexican spices to the blend. The result was really tasty! I made these vegan & gluten-free black bean falafels with pre-cooked chickpeas; if you use pre-soaked chickpeas, the result will be more crunchy. Serve them as part of a healthy salad or wrapped in tortilla/flatbread with salsa - or as party nibbles. I love snacking on them during the day dipped, in guacamole or hummus.

Ingredients

1 cup drained cooked chickpeas
1 shallot or 3 spring onions
2 cloves of garlic
½ tsp oregano
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp salt
½ tsp ground pepper
1 tsp chipotle paste
1 Tbsp tomato purée
1 cup drained black beans (from tin)
2 Tbsp chopped coriander leaves
1 Tbsp ground flaxseed mixed with 3 Tbsp water
1 Tbsp chickpea flour

Instructions

Finely chop the onion and garlic.
In a mixing bowl, combine the drained chickpeas, garlic, onion, spices, salt pepper and pastes. Put the mixture into a food processor and whiz, scraping down the sides of the food processor as necessary.
Add the black beans and fresh coriander leaves. Pulse again until you get a sticky, coarse texture. Transfer the mixture into a bowl.
Add the flaxseed paste and the chickpea flour. Combine well, cover the bowl and chill for 2 hours.
When you’re ready to cook the falafels, take the mixture out of the fridge. Form small patties. If the mixture doesn’t stick together properly, add more chickpea flour.
Heat some grapeseed oil in a small, deep pan - the depth of the oil should be about 3 cm. Fry 4-5 patties at a time, for about 2-3 minutes on each side, until golden brown.
Transfer the falafels onto a plate, lined with paper kitchen towels.
Fry more falafels, using up the mixture. Add more oil to the pan as necessary.