Baked Falafel Sandwich With Home Made Hummus, Tahini And Whole Wheat Oats Pita Bread

Crispy and crunchy brown croquettes known as Falafels are a world wide sensation. People love to indulge in these scrumptious fried goodies, and I am among one of those who can devour many of these easily without even thinking twice about the amount of extra calories these come loaded with.

When fried these falafels loose all their nutritional qualities and become just fat balls. And since few days I have been eating healthy diet and trying to reduce the consumption of fat, so decided to bake these and made a wholesome meal out of falafels. I served these with whole wheat and oats flour pita bread along with some hummus and tahini sauce.

This was my first attempt at making pita pockets at home and to make them healthy I made these combining whole wheat flour and oats along with some Italian seasoning. Though the All purpose flour pitas taste more good, these come without guilt. Initially I baked these pita pockets but I got really mad after seeing papad like pitas...then I remembered seeing these at Priya's space where she makes them like rotis. I too used that technique and voila I had some soft and delicious pita pockets.

Would like to thank my new buddy Meghna who sparked the idea of healthy eating in me.

Leaning Tower Of Falafel

Baked Falafel: (Yields around 13)

Ingredients:

Chick Peas Soaked Overnight- 2 Cups ( Soaked Chick Peas)

Garlic- 2 Cloves

Onion- 1 Big

Coriander Leaves- 1/2 Bunch
Bread Crumbs- 2 tbsp

Coriander Powder- 1 tsp

Roasted Cumin Powder- 1 tsp

Red Chilli Powder- 1/2 tsp or more

Salt- To Taste

Lemon Juice- 2 tsp

Baking Powder- 1/4 tsp

Baking Soda- 1/4 tsp

Olive Oil- To Brush the falafels

Procedure:

• Preheat the oven to 230 degrees C.
• Rinse the soaked chick peas with ample fresh water and drain. Grind the drained chick peas in a food processor or mixie coarsely without adding any water and empty in a big bowl.
• Now dry grind the coriander leaves along with onion and garlic and add it in bowl along with chick peas.
• Add in bread crumbs, salt, coriander powder, cumin powder,red chilli powder, baking powder, baking soda and lemon juice to the chick peas mixture.
• Mix evenly all the ingredients and shape it in balls and flatten them little like patties.
• Brush with olive oil on both sides of the balls.
• Arrange them in the baking tray and bake for around 50 minutes turning the falafels once in between till they brown from outside and become crunchy.

Tahini:

Ingredients: 

White Sesame- 1/4 Cup

Lemon Juice- 1 to 2 tbsp

Olive Oil- 1 tsp

Water As Required

Salt- To Taste

Procedure:

• Dry roast the sesame seeds in a pan or kadhai till they very slightly change their colour and release the aroma. Keep aside to cool.
• Add the sesame seeds and other ingredients in the mixer jar and grind till a smooth paste is obtained. Adjust the thickness as required by adding more or less water.

Hummus

Hummus:

Ingredients:

Chick Peas Soaked Overnight And Pressure Cooked- 1 Cup (Cooked Chick Peas)

Tahini- 1 tbsp

Garlic- 2 Cloves

Lemon Juice- 2 -3 tbsp

Mint Leaves- 3 or 4

Salt- To Taste

Olive Oil- 1 tbsp

Water

Procedure:

Add all the ingredients in the mixer except oil and grind to make a smooth paste. Transfer the ground hummus in a bowl and pour olive oil on top.

Pita Bread:


Ingredients:

Whole Wheat Flour- 1 1/2 Cup

Ground Oats Flour- 1/2 Cup

Instant Yeast- 1 1/2 tsp

Salt- 1/2 tsp

Sugar- 1/2 tsp

Italian Seasoning- 1 tsp

Luke warm Water- Around 200 ml

Procedure:

• In a large bowl add whole wheat flour, oats flour along with yeast, salt, sugar and Italian seasoning.
• Combine everything nicely and start kneading in a dough using the luke warm water.
• Knead for 5-10 minutes till the dough turns smooth and soft. 
• Keep the dough in a greased bowl and cover with a greased plastic wrap. Allow the dough to rise for about an hour.
• After the dough has risen pinch out balls just like when making rotis. Roll the dough using little flour into desired size and cook on heat on a flat skillet or tava allowing the pitas to puff up.

Assembling The Sandwich:


Take some shredded and chopped vegetables of your choice and spread it on the pita, then top it up with falafel, some hummus, tahini and wrap it in a foil. Serve immediately else it may become soggy.

Linking this to Fast Food Not Fat Food Event hosted by Priya of Bon Appetit brain child of Priya of Now Serving.