Go Back
Print

Falafel Salad

Servings 4
Calories 440 kcal

Ingredients

  • Falafel Ingredients Makes ~15-18 falafel disks
  • 1 can chickpeas rinsed and patted dry
  • 1/3 Cup fresh parsley
  • 1/3 Cup fresh cilantro
  • 4 cloves garlic
  • ¼ Cup chopped onion
  • 2 Tblsp pecans or raw sesame seeds
  • 2 tsp cumin
  • 2 Tblsp chickpea flour or gluten free oat flour
  • 1 tsp salt and pepper more or less to taste
  • Pinch of ground cardamom
  • Avocado oil for pan frying
  • Creamy dill tahini dressing
  • 1/2 Cup tahini If you’re sensitive to sesame, hummus works beautifully as well
  • 1/4 Cup lemon juice from about 2 lemons
  • ¼ Cup water
  • 1 ½ Tblsp garlic powder
  • 2-3 Tblsp chopped fresh dill or 1-2 Tblsp dried dill
  • ¼ tsp cumin
  • Salt to taste
  • Salad Ingredients
  • 1 Cup dry quinoa
  • Mixed greens
  • Red onion
  • Black olives
  • Fresh or dried dill to top

Instructions

  1. Start by preparing the quinoa. To a medium sized pot, add 1 Cup dry quinoa to just under 2 Cups water. Bring to boil. Cover and reduce to simmer for about 15 minutes.
  2. Next prepare the dressing. Add all ingredients minus the water into a small bowl and wisk together. Now add the water little by little according to how thick you want it.
  3. Next, prepare the falafels. Combine all ingredients except the flour to a food processor or blender. Begin by pulsing and scraping the sides down. Blend and scrape until everything is broken down really small and combined well, but not so much that it becomes a paste. You still want a little texture.
  4. Put mixture in separate bowl and stir in flour.
  5. Now form the mixture into about 2-3 inch balls and press down on 2 of the sides so it forms a disk-like shape. This will make pan frying them easier. Alternatively, you could leave them as balls and deep fry them in more oil if you wanted.
  6. Heat a large skillet over medium heat and add enough avocado oil to coat the pan (about 2-3 Tbs)
  7. Add falafel disks to skillet and fry for about 5 minutes, flipping over when the underside is toasty and brown. Depending on the heat of the stove, time may vary. Be careful not to burn the falafel.
  8. Build the salad: Add as much of the salad ingredients as you prefer! The quinoa definitely makes it more of a substantial meal, so if this is your dinner or larger meal of the day, add more. Top with tahini dill dressing and more dill to taste.

Recipe Notes

**Appropriate for the Elimination Diet or Mediterranean (Cardiometabolic) nutrition plan.

For a salad with 4 falafel disks, 5 Tblsp tahini dressing and 1/2 Cup quinoa: 

  • 441 kcals
  • 37 g carb
  • 16 g protein
  • 22 g fat 
  • 11.5 g fiber 
  • 235 mg sodium
  • 0 g added sugar