So last week I ran a half marathon. No biggie. Now this isn’t a fitness blog in the least, unless bench pressing challah counts as a sport, so I won’t bore you with a play-by-play. More exciting than me, my roommate ran the full marathon, on her birthday no less, so in comparison my slow jog (with a soft j) of a half seems like a power walk around the block. We happen to choose Savannah as the city of choice to frolic around in. Little know fact (to me)- you can drink on the streets in Savannah. Oh yes you can! Some of the most beautiful words in the English language may just be “for here to to go?” after placing an order for a Bud Light (I initially wrote Bubbe Light. I may be onto something…don’t steal that idea).
Here is me and Paula Dean, y’all!
View from the race start (well my start about an hour back from the line).
And a post race beverage!
Between the running and the imbibing, I pretty much only wanted to eat steak the rest of the trip. Sorry vegetarians! But now I don’t want to look at a ribeye for at least a hour week. As soon as we got back, I decided to cook up something vegetarian, maybe even incorporate a vegetable or two. These black bean falafel patties are too tasty! You could even bake them if you’re being extra healthy. But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. Here is all Jew need:
First up, let’s start our patties. Add black beans, minced onion, parsley, garlic, lemon, cumin, chili pepper, black pepper and salt in a food processor and blend away!
Yum! Then just add enough flour until you can form a ball that isn’t too sticky.
Meanwhile, heat up oil to 375 degrees F. You don’t want the oil cooler than that or the falafel will just soak up the oil, and any hotter than that and the outside will cook before the inside. So if you don’t have a thermometer, just test a piece first. It should take about three minutes per side to cook and brown the outside.
Remove with a slotted spoon and then drain on a rack over a paper towel. Sprinkle with salt immediately.
Now to serve! I made a simple Israeli Salad to go with my falafel- I mixed tomatoes, cucumbers, parsley, olive oil, lemon and salt.
I meant to serve them in pita, but I forgot that my local supermarket has no pita to purchase and I was feeling a bit lazy after all that running to make some. Luckily, they offer about four dozen types of tortillas so I went with that as a back up plan!
Then I topped mine with a tahini sauce and my Israeli Salad. Tzatziki Sauce, Fried Eggplant or Pesto Hummus would be awesome too!
Serve hot!
Black Bean Falafel Patties
Ingredients
- 2 cups cooked black beans
- 1 cup onion diced
- 1/2 cup parsley minced
- 3 cloves garlic roasted or not, minced
- 1/2 lemon juiced
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1/4 teaspoon chili pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3/4 - 1 tablespoon flour
- Grapeseed oil canola or vegetable works too
Instructions
- Add black beans, minced onion, parsley, garlic, lemon, cumin, chili pepper, black pepper and salt in a food processor and blend away!
- Then just add enough flour until you can form a ball that isn’t too sticky.
- Meanwhile, heat up oil to 375 degrees F. You don’t want the oil cooler than that or the falafel will just soak up the oil, and any hotter than that and the outside will cook before the inside. So if you don’t have a thermometer, just test a piece first. It should take about three minutes per side to cook and brown the outside.
- Then drain on a rack over a paper towel. Sprinkle with salt immediately.
- Serve on a pita with Israeli salad and hummus or however you like!
- Makes 8 (2 per person)
13 Comments
Oy, you are hysterical. I happened upon your blog via the Instagram black hole (oh, look what photo [insert person I don’t really *know* but follow anyway] liked… and look who commented there! And look at their pictures! etc, etc) and am so glad I did. Now that we moved away from my parents in MN, I’m on my own for brisket, kugel and matzo balls. Hopefully I can pick up some tips … much cheaper than trying to FedEx my mom out to CA.
Ha I’m glad you found my blog! I love Instagram but totally know what you mean about the black whole. 🙂
I mean hole- oy!!
It took me three times going back to look at those bean patties until I figured out that it wasn’t the actual Paula Deen. Wow. Meanwhile, I may swap those bean patties in for the brown rice/goat cheese cakes I have planned for later this week. Tough call.
Yes I’m excited I tricked one person- it was pretty lifelike for cardboard! Ooh tough call because you could pretty much cover poop in goat cheese and it would be edible. I love it so much. Goat cheese, that is, not poop.
Yes, I completely understand – that stuff is awesome. Again, goat cheese, not poop.
[…] course, my pear, pomegranate and gorgonzola salad, my challah mushroom dressing, a pumpkin pie a la Paula Dean. And with the leftovers, Thanksgiving Benedict! (Make sure to vote for your favorite leftover by […]
[…] Gotta keep with the theme for National Falafal Day with a paleo friendly version I worked up. These make a great side dish, salad topping, or by themselves with some tzatziki sauce. And for another twist on the traditional recipe, check out my good friend Chef Amy over at What Jew Wanna Eat. […]
[…] http://whatjewwannaeat.com/black-bean-falafel-patties/ […]
I plan to try this recipe. The whole story behind it and the comments have me laughing my head off. Maybe the first time I haven’t ‘jumped’ straight to the recipe. Thank you
Ha I had to go back and see what I wrote 12 years ago! Oy! Glad you enjoyed! I try.