Falafel with Tzaziki

Yesterday I ate hummus for breakfast (I am going through a phase where I hate all things breakfast-y.) and was thinking how nice it would be to make it up and freeze it so I could make a ton at once and then grab some as I ran out the door. But I think the texture of hummus would make for a gross product post-freezer, so I decided to try falafel instead. I also got to wanting some tzaziki, with lots of garlic, and falafel is the perfect vehicle for tzaziki. Well, second perfect. A spoon is the first.

Some notes on this recipe:

• You can use a regular cuke instead of english or kirby, but you'll have to do some serious de-seeding.
• I used a lot of garlic. I could have chased vampires away this morning. If this is not your desired result, then adjust as needed.
• Adding extra sesame seeds to the pan is a good thing. They toast up really well.
• The tzaziki should sit overnight or at least a few hours prior to serving. The flavor is fuller the longer it sits.
• I used a food processor to make this, but you could probably use a blender. Or even a potato masher, if you really needed to be resourceful.

Also- this isn't a classic falafel recipe, but it works. I was trying to keep the fat content down. Plus, I baked it. You could probably fry it up if you weren't worrying about your waistline :)

For the falafel:
2 cans garbanzo beans
1 medium onion, chopped
garlic (I used 7 cloves), chopped
one bunch cilantro, chopped (more or less to taste)
1/2 c. bread crumbs
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp basil
1/2 tsp coriander
1/2 tsp hot sauce (or more to taste)
salt
pepper
sesame seeds (optional)

For the tzaziki:
1/2 large english or kirby cucumber
2 c. plain greek yogurt
garlic, to taste, minced
1/2 tsp minced dill (if using dry, you might use less)
two squirts of lemon juice

Throw your onions, garlic and parsley into the food processor and pulse until they're pretty well blended.

Add garbanzos, about a cup at a time, and pulse until they break up and make an almost paste.

Add spices and give a few quick pulses until they're mixed in.

Dump the garbanzo mixture into a bowl and add the bread crumbs. Mix them in well.

Lightly oil a baking pan.

Make small balls of the falafel mixture and place on the pan, flattening them with a spoon.

Sprinkle sesame seeds on the top of the patties.

Bake at 400 for 10 minutes on each side.

While its baking, make the...

Tzaziki!!

Shred or mince the cucumber. If you choose to mince, keep the chunks pretty small.

Place the cucumber in a colander and press out additional water as best you can.

In a bowl, combine minced garlic, yogurt, dill, cucumbers and lemon juice. Mix well and store in the fridge until its time to nom.

I served this with spinach and tomatoes. I wrapped the falafel, tzaziki and tomato in a spinach leaf and ate it like that. You could also use it to stuff a pita. Tzaziki can be used on a variety of dishes. Experiment and tell me what you like best!