Tuesday, September 23, 2008

Falafel Lunch

No Sunday dinner again this past weekend, but that’s okay because Chase’s band had a gig in San Antonio Sunday night. A Saturday late lunch with falafels was requested, so I did the best I could to put together something quick and tasty.

Happy Veganface Jessy has an excellent post of her recent falafel dinner, which was very inspiring. Sadly, unlike Jessy who prepared everything from scratch, I used store bought falafel mix and pita bread. I did make her tahini sauce though, and it was wonderful.

As I was shopping, I was surprised to discover that my (former) favorite falafel mix used only chickpea FLOUR. So I was glad to find this new product at my neighborhood market, made with fava beans and chickpeas – no flour.


We baked our patties and they were very good, quite spicy too!



I was tempted to make Jessy’s cabbage salad (it looks so good!), but we are used to what is actually a very bad green bean salad at our favorite falafel café. I decided to use a recipe from Vegan Fire & Spice for Moroccan Spiced Carrots, and just subbed in my fresh green beans. It was delicious with lots of spicy cumin and coriander.




Saturday morning I put on a pot of Lentil Tomato Soup. This recipe is from Vegetarian Soups for All Seasons by Nava Atlas. I have to say that I’ve made many, many soups from this book and they have all been outstanding. This one was no exception.



I set out a platter of the tahini sauce, along with lettuce, cucumber, lemon, and tomatoes.



I made myself a Falafel Salad.



And Chase made himself a big fat pita.



Dessert was Iron Cupcakes (see previous post). Everybody loves the popcorn topping!

Like Jessy, it seemed an eternity since we had last enjoyed falafels, so this was a great meal for us.

I saw a search that led to my blog that pleased me – “really really good recipes for supper.” And here I haven’t made one in over two weeks. This next weekend looks a little iffy too… Rats....

23 comments:

LizNoVeggieGirl said...

FALAFEL!!!! Oh, how I love thee. Great meal you had, with all the components!!

Amy said...

Mmmm I was drooling over Jessy's felafel too! (and mine generally come out of a box as well, they're made with split peas instead of chickpeas). All these felafel posts are making me want some! I better get the box out of the cupboard......

Usha said...

Everything looks delicious...but I especially loved your lentil soup..looks wonderful...and falafel is one of my absolute faves :)

erica said...

I've started using falafel mix again, too... well, I can never get the dang things to turn out right when I make them from scratch, and I never keep bread crumbs around. The VwaV tahini sauce is my weapon of choice with falafel these days. Whoa yum. (I'm safe looking at food right now, I'm not craving it, but I can definitely appreciate it!) I do make my own pita bread from scratch, though, the Moosewood Cookbook recipe is vegan and foolproof - and I sub all ww flour for the white flour, not just part.

P.S. - I ALWAYS think you have really really good food! Also, yay Chase! I'm glad they're getting more gigs.

Anonymous said...

Of course, all searches for "really, really god recipes for supper" should always lead to your blog! I'll take both the salad and the big fat falafel, please?

Em said...

These all look so amazing and beautiful! I'm going to try to use some premade falafal dishes in my dorm room where I just have a microwave and limited food supplies...thanks for the ideas!

Anonymous said...

I love falafel and could probably eat it every day (if only it were not usually fried. . .)--never tried to make my own, though! And that soup looks divine!

Anonymous said...

I just bought another packages mix - I love falafel. I am totally having it tonight for supper.

Jacqueline Meldrum said...

Nice meal! I think I would have had mine on the pita too!

Anonymous said...

How cool that Chase is getting more dates - excellent!
Falafel...is there a conspiracy to get me to make some?? I love it so much, why don't I make it more? And I love that search tag, it is very accurate!

ChocolateCoveredVegan said...

LOL you've reminded me of two things:

1. I need to make falafel soon

2. I need to check Google Dashboard to see what my latest weird searches are.

jessy said...

ohhhhh WOW! your falafels look SO good! store bought or not, damn - they look so tasty! makes me want to have more falafels now! ahahahaha! we could get stuck in a tasty cycle, yeah?!

your green beans look stunningly beautiful! so fresh & vibrant! mmmmmmm!

i love the idea of having falafel salad! i'm totally going to have to try that next time we make falafel! and i'm so happy you liked the tahini dressing! hooray!

i'm gonna have to check out nava atlas's book - the soup looks to good not to make! thanks! :D

tofufreak said...

Everyone's eating of falafels makes me feel left out :( lucky you! i'm to lazy haha :P

looks super yummy!

Anonymous said...

Those falafels are making my mouth water. They look amazing!

Carrie™ said...

I'm so far behind in visiting blogs and everyone has been so busy cooking that it's taking me a while to get around to everyone. Falafels are one of my favorite foods. I've never made them from scratch, just mixes and they've been decent enough. Love the cupcakes posted below!! What an awesome idea.
BTW, what kind of music does Chase's band play?

Carrie™ said...

I'm so far behind in visiting blogs and everyone has been so busy cooking that it's taking me a while to get around to everyone. Falafels are one of my favorite foods. I've never made them from scratch, just mixes and they've been decent enough. Love the cupcakes posted below!! What an awesome idea.
BTW, what kind of music does Chase's band play?

urban vegan said...

Oh boy oh boy oh boy....I must visit my local falafel cart immediately.

Judy's Nutrition said...

Oh, I love falafel, but I've actually never tried making it. Can't be that hard....

And what a fantastic looking soup.

Monika K said...

Gosh, I LOVE falafel and wished I had a favorite falafel cafe somewhere close...oh well, maybe I'll just have to make them again! Were yours gluten free?

P.S. What a creative idea for a cupcake! And topping it with popcorn - who knew?!

Anonymous said...

Is that Dole "american" bagged salad in the falafel salad pic? I'm a big fan too :-) Your falafels look awesome, and I'm dying for a bowl of that soup right about now.

aTxVegn said...

Monika - I think the falafel was gluten free, but I'm not certain.

Mad - Yes on the salad! I usually mix it with healthy type greens, but you just gotta have plain ol' iceberg lettuce for falafels!

Carrie - Chase got snatched up by another band, Eisenheim. They play metal. They have a gig this weekend at our world renown ACL fest - woohoo!

Kati said...

It's true - you always make really really good suppers...and lunches and desserts! I'd love to live at your house with all that yummy food. :-)

Way to go Chase!

Carrie™ said...

Congrats to Chase! That's an excellent gig! Hopefully he can get a peek at you-know-who and maybe snap a photo. I adore him. RP I mean, although I don't know Chase, I'm sure he's adorable too! :o)