I was so excited when I found this recipe on 101 cookbooks for the lovely squishy squashy baked sweet potato falafel made famous by Leon. Since discovering it, I've made it in the sweet potato version, but also experimented a bit with peas and feta in the summer, and today, with roasted squash.
They're fantastically light falafel (not as you know them), healthy because they're baked, and have a wonderful flavour. They also freeze really well - pop them in when you've shaped them, and cook as you need from frozen. As with an awful lots of the things I'm cooking lately, you begin by slowly roasting the squash to develop its flavour.
Makes about 18
About 2/3 of a large butternut squash, or any other squash
Ground nut oil
About 3 tbsp gram (chickpea) flour
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
Coriander leaf (preferably fresh - 2 tbsp, but dried is fine - 2 tsp)
A squeeze of lemon
Sesame seeds
Salt and pepper
Peel and chop up the squash into quite big pieces. I say quite big because you don't want them to burn at the edges, and I think a long slow roast works best. Drizzle with a bit of ground nut oil and season, then roast in a low oven (about 140) for about an hour (poking with a knife will soon tell you when they're done). Empty the squash pieces into a bowl and mash like mad with a fork.
Add the other ingredients except the sesame seeds, making sure they're all well incorporated. If it's too sticky, add a bit more gram flour. You want it to be a fairly moist dough but not too floury. Chill the dough for a while to make it easier to deal with.
Roll them into whatever shapes you like. Sometimes mine turn out quite mad and alien-like, with crazy litte tentacles. Other days, they're smooth and round. Pop them on a lightly oiled baking tray, sprinkle with the sesame seeds and bake at 180 for about 15-18 minutes. Enjoy with a salad, squished onto a pitta, or dipped in houmous. Great hot or cold.
They're fantastically light falafel (not as you know them), healthy because they're baked, and have a wonderful flavour. They also freeze really well - pop them in when you've shaped them, and cook as you need from frozen. As with an awful lots of the things I'm cooking lately, you begin by slowly roasting the squash to develop its flavour.
Makes about 18
About 2/3 of a large butternut squash, or any other squash
Ground nut oil
About 3 tbsp gram (chickpea) flour
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
Coriander leaf (preferably fresh - 2 tbsp, but dried is fine - 2 tsp)
A squeeze of lemon
Sesame seeds
Salt and pepper
Peel and chop up the squash into quite big pieces. I say quite big because you don't want them to burn at the edges, and I think a long slow roast works best. Drizzle with a bit of ground nut oil and season, then roast in a low oven (about 140) for about an hour (poking with a knife will soon tell you when they're done). Empty the squash pieces into a bowl and mash like mad with a fork.
Add the other ingredients except the sesame seeds, making sure they're all well incorporated. If it's too sticky, add a bit more gram flour. You want it to be a fairly moist dough but not too floury. Chill the dough for a while to make it easier to deal with.
Roll them into whatever shapes you like. Sometimes mine turn out quite mad and alien-like, with crazy litte tentacles. Other days, they're smooth and round. Pop them on a lightly oiled baking tray, sprinkle with the sesame seeds and bake at 180 for about 15-18 minutes. Enjoy with a salad, squished onto a pitta, or dipped in houmous. Great hot or cold.
Hey Lizzie.
ReplyDeleteReally glad I found your blog, its ace.
I've got a load of squashes in store from last year that need eating up. Will definitely be trying this recipe, especially in a pitta. That sounds delicious.
Jono.
Hi Jono
ReplyDeleteThanks for your lovely comment - it's always great to hear that people are reading and liking! I'd love to hear how you get on with this. Am always open to suggestions on how to improve my cooking.
Just had a quick look at your blog and will definitely be checking it out again - I've just started dipping my toe in to the world of growing your own. I have tomato, lettuce and courgette seedlings at the moment, and I need all the help I can get!
Take care and enjoy
Lizzie