Mediterranean Falafel Bowl.
Can we make “Bowl Food” Monday a thing?
Cause really, isn’t everything better when eaten out of a bowl…
Okay, don’t answer that one. I’m sure we can all come up with some pretty gross “bowl foods”…aka the store bought alfredo soup my brother Malachi ate over the weekend. He said it was maybe the grossest thing he’d ever had, but right now soup is about all he can eat. He had is tonsils removed on Friday and well, apparently having your tonsils removed is even worse than getting wisdom teeth pulled. His mouth looks nasty, and there are basically two giant holes in there now.
Eeeew.
Anyway, all he can eat is soup and even that hurts. I feel SOO bad for him. I did make him mashed potatoes though. Luckily he said he loved them and that they were the best thing he’s has eaten in a while. Yeah!! Last week I was all about soft foods and now it’s Kai’s turn. Normally I’d be like haha, but I feel pretty bad for him. Not going to lie, just looking at his mouth looks painful. Evidently, getting your tonsils out as kid his way less of a big deal than getting tonsils out as an adult, where it is a much more painful process. UGH.
OKAY, but maybe we should change topics here and chat about some pretty and delicious things.
YESS, for sure!
First though, how was everyone’s weekend?!? I really hope you guys are having some nice spring weather! It was actually beautiful here all weekend. Sunny and not freezing!! I spent all Saturday working on a project and basically hit my pillow at eleven PM and was out cold. Sunday I took it a little easier, hung with Kai a bit, he leaves to go back to school on Sunday, and worked a little…never not working, right? 🙂
Oh, and I was maybe convinced by a woman I work with to get an Alaskan Malamute. She has the cutest one and was sending photos in between our work texts, I was basically dying, so cool looking! Like I need a Malamute though.
MUST HAVE…
Just need more time in my life. Ahhh.
OK ok.
Let’s try this again, Mediterranean Falafel Bowls. Time to chat about them!!
I mean, how fun and pretty are these? The perfect Monday meal!! Healthy, light and fairly simple to make (don’t let the ingredient list freak you out!!). Let me run you through it all. K? Cool.
…first, start out by making some homemade falafel. Oh falafel, I love that word, it’s so fun to say. I kept the recipe pretty basic and simple, almonds, herbs and chickpeas, but then I added sun-dried tomatoes for a nice Mediterranean kick, they’re perfect! I am giving you two cooking options here, fry or bake. I have to be honest, I prefer fried over baked. Typically I love baked versions of fried food, but falafel is really not one of them. That said, the falafel is still pretty awesome baked, just BETTER fried, if that makes sense. Either way is YUM though. 🙂
…second, toss cooked quinoa with some veggies and herbs.
….third, throw everything together and add some KILLER bowl toppings which can include, beet hummus (or your favorite hummus) tomatoes, cucumbers, kalamata olives, avocados (of course), roasted red peppers, feta cheese (duh) and a mix of toasted pine nuts, sunflower and or sesame seeds.
…fourth, drizzle with some lemon tahini.
…fifth, EAT and EAT. 🙂
Pretty easy, right? I know it looks like a lot, but it comes together faster than you’d think, AND trust me, any effort spent making this is sooo worth it. These healthy bowls are kind of everything.
They have everything a vegetarian bowl should have, plus some feta cheese… cause it’s the best, and Monday needs cheese.
Man how many Mondays do you think I’ve said that? Yep, well all Mondays need cheese!!! FACT.
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Mediterranean Falafel Bowl.
By halfbakedharvest
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American, Mediterranean
Keyword: breakfast bowl, falafel
Healthy, light and fairly simple to make (don't let the ingredient list freak you out!
Ingredients
Falafel
- 1 cup fresh parsley
- 1 cup fresh cilantro
- 1 cup raw almonds
- 1 (16 ounce) can chickpeas drained + rinsed
- 2 tablespoons flour use a gluten free flour if needed
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 teaspoons sesame seeds
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons rounded finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes
Bowls
- 2 cups cooked quinoa
- 2 Persian cucumbers sliced
- 1 cup fresh parsley chopped
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- salt + pepper to taste
- 1 cup [beet hummus | https://dev.halfbakedharvest.com/roasted-beet-hummus-video/] or your favorite hummus
- 1/2 cup kalamata olives halved
- 1 roasted red pepper sliced (homemade or jarred)
- 1 avocado sliced
- 8 ounces feta cheese crumbled
- toasted pine nuts, sunflower seeds and or sesame seeds, for topping
Lemon Tahini
- 1 cup plain greek yogurt
- 1/3 cup tahini
- 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
- 1-2 tablespoons harissa OR finely chopped sun-dried tomatoes*
Instructions
Falafel
-
In a food processor, combine the parsley, cilantro and almonds. Pulse until the almonds are finely chopped. Add the chickpeas, flour and baking soda and pulse until until the mixture is combined and mostly smooth. Add the sesame seeds and salt, pulse once or twice to just combine and then stir in the sun-dried tomatoes.
-
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Roll the dough into rounded teaspoon size balls.
-
To BAKE: preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
-
Flatten the balls with the palm of your hand. Brush the tops of the balls with olive oil. Bake until crisp and golden brown, about 15-20 minutes.
-
To FRY: add a few inches of oil to the bottom of a heavy pot. Heat to 375 degrees F.
-
Fry the balls for 2-3 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Drain on paper towels and then sprinkle lightly with salt.
Bowls
-
In a large bowl, toss together the quinoa, cucumbers, parsley, olive oil, red wine vinegar, salt and pepper. Divide the quinoa among bowls. To each bowl, add a dollop of [hummus | https://dev.halfbakedharvest.com/roasted-beet-hummus-video/], handful of kalamata olives, roasted red peppers slices and avocado. Sprinkle the bowls with feta and toasted nuts/seeds. Finish with a drizzle of lemon tahini (recipe below). EAT!
Lemon Tahini
-
Combine all ingredients in a bowl and whisk until completely smooth. Add water to thin the sauce to a drizzling consistency. Taste and adjust as needed. Sauce will keep for 1 week in the fridge.
Recipe Notes
*I used a harissa that was a combo of sun-dried tomatoes and harissa spices. I found it at Whole Foods. You can use this, or regular harissa and just add sun-dried tomatoes. Both are delicious!
*Falafel adapted from Curtis Stone.
Now, let’s all eat bowl food today… and then have the best week!! ?
oooh, i love the sound of almonds in the falafels! i haven’t heard of pudding them into falafels, but it seems like they’d give the falafels a toastier, richer flavor. and yay, happy that you finally get to have more texture in your diet! (i remember just missing being able to chew things when i got my wisdom teeth out).
Thanks Heather!! it was pretty rough!! so glad to be done with it!
You always manage to ge me hungry for lunch early in the morning…
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haha, oopsy!! Thanks Miranda!
The sundried tomato sounds like a great addition to falafel! Also I feel like if I would make this I’d make a huge batch and have some for lunch the next day, yum!
It worked perfectly as leftovers for me!! Thanks!!
Yes! I vote for “Food Bowl Mondays”! This looks delicious!
I don’t know how everything is just so much BETTER in a bowl, but it IS! Omg Tieghan, I’m dying to eat this and imagine I’m really adventuring on the Mediterranean coast!
Thanks Tori!! I hope you got to have it!! if only we were all enjoying on the coast !!
Your falafel sounds wonderful!! Definitely saving this recipe! Bowl Monday can totally be a thing 🙂
THanks Katrina!!
this is one of the easier falafel recipes I’ve seen, and I am SO digging it! def pinning to remake x
YAY!! Hope you love it Christine! Thanks!
Really think this would be great down at the beachut with pitta breads. Perfect grab and go food for our teens. Elinor x
Perfect!! Thanks Elinor!!
Oh my goodness, this looks completely delicious. Food TOTALLY does taste better when it’s in a bowl – how does that work?! Haha. Totally pinning this recipe!!
Theres just something about it!! Thanks Lucia! (:
Wow, I loved the sound of this recipe. Though in my house I think we might just replace the Quinoa with rice and try this out.
That would work perfectly! Hope you guys love it!!
I’ve been on a falafel kick (and bowl kick…) lately – adding these into my rotation. Pinned and cannot wait to make!
Hope you loved them!! Let me know how they are!
I love what nuts do to add some great texture to falafel. This is a gorgeous bowl… one that I’m craving right now (since I haven’t had breakfast and it’s snowing and all I want to do is curl up with food… any food… and go to town).
Thank you Brian!! (:
Hope your brother Kai feels better and recovers soon! <3
Thanks!! He’s finally starting to feel better after 9 days!!
Just made falafel last night — love how you made it into a bowl. Looks delicious Tieghan!! xo
YAY How was it!!?
I am completely on board for Bowl Food Mondays! These look delicious.
Thank you!! (:
YUM! The lemon sesame tahini sauce is my fave part. Just so good! I am desiring a puppy fix myself. Its been nearly 10 years since we had puppy-dom around here. Our 2 dogs are huge (Rhodesian Ridgebacks), but I love big dogs. However, long-haired dogs drive me nuts bc I can’t stand pet hair inside my house. I heard Malamutes can be pretty high strung. Its good to make sure that the dog you want actually has the characteristics you can live with. Happy Monday!
Thank you!! Its a hard decision!! thanks for the advice though (:
Omg! I love your blog! Love the falafel bowl.Never tried falafel but looking at the picture my mouth is watering! As a kid I wanted alaskan malamute! They rock but they eat tons of food!
Thank you thank you!! They eat a ton, and need a lot of exercise/attention!! But they are so dang cute!!
This sounds amazing and so satisfying, I love everything in it and the sundried tomatoes are a really great addition to the falafel. I really want a malamute, they need a lot of exercise though!
Thank you Hannah!! Right?? But they’re SO cute!!
This recipe looks amazing! I’ve never made falafel but I must try this soon. Thanks for sharing!
Cheers! xo Anna Lynn with Waiting on Martha
Let me know how it goes!!! Thanks Anna(:
I’m a sucker for all things falafel and these look great Tieghan!
Thanks Kathy!!
Holy crap! This sounds unreal. And not only does it sound delicious, it looks beautiful. I will be making this meal this week. Thank you!
How did it go!?
Loving the fact that these healthy bowls are a thing-I wish I could have your falafels delivered straight to my door!! This would seriously make for such a good lunch/dinner after a long day of classes…
Thanks Joleen!! Maybe thats my next big thing!! lol ?
Mondays always need cheese! We had mango curry sweet potato bowls last night with broiled garlic cheddar on top. So, yeah, I LOVE everything in bowl form & this falafel bowl looks amazing! I especially love the bright pink hummus and the tahini drizzle.
YAY Thank you chelsea!! (:
Mediterranean food is the best! This bowl is so gorgeous.. I just wish it would magically appear in time for lunch ;).
Wouldn’t that just be amazing!! Haha Thanks Laura!
Thank you for another fantastic recipe! We replaced the cilantro and parsley with kale and a spinach/arugula mix. Still turned out just as delicious! We ended up having leftovers and they were still great the next day! We will definitely be using the falafels for new meals! =)
Thank you!! Glad you liked it!! (:
I love this recipe, my happy pixel!! 😉
Thank you !!
Bowl Food Friday should be a thing too! 😀 I’m making myself a curry Buddha bowl ATM 😉 I love these falafels and the way you plated everything!
Thanks so much Cassie!! ☺️
This was really easy to make, aside from the fact that I do not have a food processor…which made it a little difficult to grind up all the falafel ingredients. Once again another amazing recipe. The lemon tahini sauce was the perfect addition.
The food processor helps A LOT! But happy to hear it was still easy and you liked it! (:
To stay with the chickpea/garbanzo bean theme, will garbanzo flour work in place of regular flour?
Hey Thomas! I like that idea a lot, but I personally have never tried it so I cannot say for sure if it would work or not. Please let me know if you try it. Thanks!
Delicious! But not vegan (…yoghurt…)
And feta cheese…
This recipe is absolutely delicious and so easy to make! The first time, I made everything that was included in the falafel bowl recipe for lunch; the second time, I made a falafel platter with red pepper hummus, roasted carrots and pitas for an office party and it was a hit! Thank you so much for a wonderful recipe! I will be making this again in the future!
SO happy it was easy for you Jenny! Sounds so delicious, thank you so much!
Hi! The tomatoes in your photos are missing from the bowl ingredient list.
I’ll have to fix that. Thanks for letting me know, Jenna!
Is the 1 cup the accurate amount for the yogurt? My dressing was SUPER thick and had to be plopped on the salad, not drizzled. (even after adding water)
Hey Jenna,
1 cup is correct, if the dressing is to thick for your liking just thin with water or lemon juice. If you still find it thick, you can use 3/4 cup yogurt. Let me know if you have questions. Thank you!
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how much chickpeas for the falafel? 1 ounce or 1 16 ounce can? Thanks.
So sorry for the confusion. It is 1 (16 ounce) can. Recipe has been fixed. Hope you love this bowl!