Falafel, Salad and Wine
As you might know, I really enjoy making vegetarian meals that are full of flavor yet pretty simple to make. This Falafel recipe really hits the mark. Quinoa really is a star here because you really don’t know it’s in the recipe, yet it binds the ingredients. It’s also gluten-free.
You’ll see Falafel fried often and I’ve made a compromise, pan frying just a bit for texture and color, followed by a finish in a hot oven. You’ll get Falafel balls that are tasty and slightly crispy.
I made this exact menu for some friends this past week and paired the meal with a wonderful Semillon from Adobe Road Wines. The flavors couldn’t have worked better together.
Try this — it doesn’t take a long time to make. You can also add my Avgolemono Soup.
Falafel, Salad and Wine
2016-03-08 13:46:49
Serves 4
For the Falafel
- 1 14.5 ounce can garbanzo beans (rinsed and drained)
- 1 cup coarsely chopped flat leaf parsley
- 1 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
- 3 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoons tahini
- ¼ cup fresh lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- Pinch of kosher salt
- Pinch of pepper
- ½ cup cooked quinoa
- ¼ cup quinoa flour
For the Meyer Lemon Dressing
- 1/4 cup tahini
- Juice of 2 meyer lemons
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- ½ teaspoon tumeric
- Salt and Pepper to taste
For the Salad
- ¼ head red cabbage
- 10 ounce container cherry tomatoes, cut in half
- ½ an English cucumber, diced
- arugula
- ½ a block of Feta, crumbled
To Make the Falafel
- Pulse the garlic and herbs in the bowl of a food processor 3-4 times. Add in the garbanzo beans, tahini, lemon juice, cumin, salt and pepper. Pulse until the mixture comes together but still is bit of chunky pieces.
- In a large bowl dump out mixture and combine it together with the quinoa and quinoa flour, stir till mixed.
- Roll mixture into 1½ inch balls. Place on a plate and cover with plastic wrap and chill in fridge for at least an hour.
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- Heat an oven proof pan over medium high heat, drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil. Slightly pan fry the falafel balls, turning and tossing so that they get some golden color. Place pan in oven and cook for 15 minutes.
To Make the Dressing
- In a bowl combine the ingredients and whisk till smooth.
- Combine all the ingredients for the dressing in a bowl and whisk until smooth.
To Make the Salad
- Coarsely chop the red cabbage, toss with a drizzle of red wine vinegar and a pinch of salt. Let sit while Falafel chills.
- Toss red cabbage with tomatoes, feta, cucumber, and arugula.
To Assemble
- Place some of the salad on a plate, top with 2-3 Falafel balls, and drizzle with Meyer Lemon dressing.
Wine Pairing
- California wine growers use Semillon primarily as a blend with Sauvignon Blanc. Washington wineries started making wine with this varietal in the early 1980s. It's also used for ice wine and late harvest wines. The wine is buttercup yellow and its nose is ripe with fruit and minerals and slightly sweet but dry and very aromatic.
Shaun Myrick https://www.shaunmyrick.com/
