This lightened up baked falafel tastes just as great as its traditionally fried version. All of the delicious, with far less oil and fat.
There is so much delicious flavour packed into each bite. Plus, baking them really saves myself a huge mess to clean! I serve my falafel in whole wheat pitas with lettuce, tomato, cucumber, cilantro, dill & homemade tahini. You may also top these with Roasted Red Pepper Hummus instead.
If you’re limiting your carb intake, these falafel also work wonderfully as salad toppers for added protein.
How to make baked falafel?
To make this simple dish, add your soaked and drained chickpeas and all remaining ingredients (except the pita and toppings) to a food processor.
- Cilantro (or sub parsley if you’re not a cilantro fan)
- Yellow onion
- Juice of 1 lemon
- Olive oil
- Basil
- Garlic powder
- Cumin
- Baking powder
- Salt and pepper
Process the mixture until crumbly, but do not over process. You don’t want to puree the ingredients, but they should be a little chunky as shown below.
Next, you will form the falafel patties. Scoop the mixture into small balls, approx 1.5-2″ in diameter and squeeze out as much moisture as you can. (Do this over your kitchen sink to avoid a big mess.) Then flatten them slightly and place on your prepared baking tray. Keep your falafel on the smaller side for quick and even baking.
Bake one side for 15 minutes, flip your falafel and bake for 5 additional minutes, until lightly golden brown, and they’re done! Delicious, easy, and nutritious!
Once baked, serve them over salad, or with pitas and all your favourite toppings.
- Tomato
- Cucumber
- Cilantro
- Homemade Tahini
- Roasted Red Pepper Hummus
More nutritious recipe favourites:
- Chili Lime Chickpea Buddha Bowl [V+GF+Oil Free]
- Baked Zucchini Tater Tots [Vegan+GF+Oil Free]
- Vegan Chicken Burgers – Gluten Free
- Baked Lentil Veggie Nuggets
Ingredients
- 1 cup dry/uncooked chickpeas soaked overnight, or 8 hours. Do NOT use canned)
- 1 cup packed cilantro roughly chopped (or parsley)
- 1 yellow onion roughly chopped
- 1 large lemon juiced
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tbsp dried basil
- 1/2 tbsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 5 whole wheat pita gluten free if needed
Optional Toppings
- tomato
- cucumber
- red onion
- fresh cilantro, parsley or dill
- tahini
- red pepper hummus
Instructions
- Line a baking tray with parchment and preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.
- Drain chickpeas and add to your food processor. Then add all remaining ingredients except the pita and toppings. Process until crumbly but not pureed. Do not over process.
- Form the mixture into small (1-1.5") balls, squeezing some excess moisture with the palm of your hand, then flatten slightly to form a patty shape. Place on prepared baking sheet.
- Bake for 15 minutes and then flip your falafel and bake for another 5 minutes or until lightly golden brown.
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