Falafel Cakes

Here is another quick, easy, and delicious dinner to add to the books! If you've seen some of my previous posts, then you are probably starting to pick up on the fact that I love chickpeas. They are a great ingredient to use in dinner recipes because they are versatile, healthy, full of fiber and protein, and cheap! With a lot of other food prices going up recently, I always like to find and purchase items that won't break the bank.

These Falafel Cakes are a twist on traditional falafel. The main difference is that this recipe does not require frying. While you won't get that super crispy crust on the outside of the falafel, you will save a lot of calories and fat grams by pan frying the cakes.

Serve these tasty and filling Falafel Cakes on a salad, in a wrap, or by themselves. Also, try pairing this falafel recipe with a tahini sauce. I was full intending on trying a sauce and including the recipe in this post, but my local grocery store doesn't carry tahini! Major bummer. So I did without and just stuck with a Greek salad dressing. If you'd like to make a tahini sauce to go along with this recipe, I would recommend that you visit Oh She Glows and give her Lightened Up Tahini Lemon Dressing a try.

Falafel Cakes (adapted from Oh She Glows)
(8 patties)

2 1/4 cups canned chickpeas, drained
2 tsp minced garlic
juice from half of a lemon
1/3 cup fresh parsley, roughly chopped
1/3 cup fresh cilantro, roughly chopped
1/4 cup chia seeds
1/3 cup breadcrumbs
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp cumin
salt and pepper to taste

Add all of the ingredients to a food processor. Pulse until ingredients are mixed, but not blended. You want there to be some texture. Take 1/4 cup of the mixture and form into a patty; you should end up with about 8 patties. Heat a skillet over medium heat. Spray with cooking spray. Cook patties for about 5 minutes on each side, or until they are golden brown and heated through.

Print this recipe!

Nutritional Info
Servings Per Recipe: 8
Amount Per Serving:
Calories: 129.1
Total Fat: 3.3 g
Cholesterol: 0.0 mg
Sodium: 283.7 mg
Total Carbs: 21.0 g
Fiber: 5.9 g
Sugars: 0.3 g
Protein: 5.0 g

Pros:
-Easy to make
-Delicious
-Healthy
-Filling
-Great leftovers-serve on a salad, in a wrap, or with a side of vegetables

Cons:
-Some of my patties cracked or started to fall apart (make sure to pack the dough in tightly so it holds together when you cook them)

Overall Rating: 4 out of 5