To celebrate the 4th of July, our friends Asif and Lauren hosted a beer tasting-potluck event. A really brilliant occasion, actually; each person attending brings a six-pack of beer they've never tasted before. Ultimately, everyone is exposed to a virtually, or at least seemingly, endless supply of never-before-heard-of brew. Excellent idea, right?
For an event like this, sustenance is definitely in order. One of the best dishes made that day? Asif and Lauren's Falafel. I've got to tell you, there's nothing like being beside someone in the kitchen who loves cooking just as much as you. Throughout the process, Asif taught me so much about making this relatively complex dish. Hopefully, I can pass along some helpful tips to you.
While the falafel took a great deal of time to make, the product was more than worth the wait. Perfectly crunch, golden brown covering of goodness encasing this soft, flavorful center. Believe me - you want to make this recipe.
Side note: Serve with tzatziki sauce - you'll be thankful; directions for the cucumber sauce can be found below the original falafel recipe.
Warning: Apparently, this dish requires caution. I nearly cut off my finger and Asif burned his skin on the deep fryer. BE CAREFUL!
Ingredients:
1 (15 ounce) can of chickpeas (i.e., garbanzo beans), drained
1 white onion, chopped
1/2 c. fresh parsley
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 egg
2 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. ground coriander
1 dash of pepper
1 tsp. salt
1 pinch cayenne pepper
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 c. dry bread crumbs - gradual (I'll tell you more about that later)
oil, for frying
Side note: Bear in mind that Asif and I made five times the amount suggested for this recipe.
Directions:
In a large bowl, mash the chickpeas until thick and pasty; don't use a blender, as the consistency will be too thin. Don't belittle the process - it's one that takes a bit of elbow grease.
In a blender, process the onion, parsley, and garlic until smooth.
Pour the onion mixture into the bowl of mashed chickpeas; stir well to combine.
In a small bowl, combine egg, cumin, coriander, salt, black and cayenne pepper, lemon juice, and baking powder.
Stir the egg mixture into that of the chickpeas, along with olive oil.
Here's where it gets a little tricky. The thing is, you want to add enough bread crumbs so that the mixture isn't sticky and holds together when rolled, but not too much to where the falafel comes out dry and crumbly. Slowly and carefully add the bread crumbs, mixing all throughout the process in order to spot desired consistency.
Form 8 balls and flatten them into patties.
Heat 1 inch of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Now, Asif and I used a deep fryer, and things worked out perfectly. The ball's in your court (I can't help it, Federer-Murray Wimbledon match is on in the background).
Fry patties in hot oil until golden brown on both sides.
Remove the falafel patties from the oil and place them on a paper towel covered plate to drain.
And you're ready to eat! It's suggested to serve these babies with a side of tzatziki sauce.
What are your favorite go-to potluck dishes? Post the dish and it just may turn up on Eat Your Heart Out.
12 comments:
For my pot-luck go-to, I like to "boil up some egg noodle" (as my mom says) for tuna-noodle casserole.
T.C., that's a great go-to - I love your mom's tuna-noodle casserole!
I like to keep things simple so I usually just cut up some fruit and make a strawberry fluff dip. Light strawberry cream cheese, marshmallow cream, and cool whip along with sliced pineapples, strawberries, and canteloupe.
Aaron, you just made my mouth water. It's amazing how something so simple could be so incredibly delicious. I'm tempted to make your strawberry fluff dip really soon.
My go to is an orzo pasta salad that my friend gave me the recipe for with honey red wine dressing, chickpeas, tomatoes and basil. It's nice and light and always a party favorite!!
@Kgambetta:
If you don't mind, could you please post that recipe here? It sounds really good.
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Usually my go-to potluck dishes aren't exactly normal potluck dishes. I often just make food that we (the above mentioned "Lauren" and I) want to eat, and make sure to make enough for everyone. We sometimes go with the falafel that you wrote about here, but often if I don't have time (or I'm just feeling lazy), I make a baked eggplant parmesan dish that we both enjoy. It's really, really easy to make and it usually goes over pretty well.
The recipe for the eggplant parm can be found here:
http://goo.gl/GVwBQ
The only thing that I do differently, is that I always "sweat" the eggplants first to take a lot of the moisture out of them. It reduces the bitterness of the eggplants, but more importantly, it gives them a more solid consistency. That way it doesn't feel mushy while eating it. Also, sometimes I add ricotta in the layering, which almost makes it like an eggplant lasagna without the pasta.
Jen, thanks for the guest spot on the blog by the way. It was a lot of fun cooking with you last week.
Jen- I LOVE falafels! I have never tried to make them from scratch..thank you for sharing all your hard work! As far as my go to dish, I feel so lost when asked to bring something to a potluck. I am much better with more specific directions. The last one I went to I was in charge of fruit. I made my platter look kick ass and everyone was happy with some grapes, strawberries and blueberries :)
@Kristen, I 100% second Asif. I'd love to have that recipe; and, something tells me I wouldn't be able to wait until the next potluck to make it. It seems like it would make the perfect light lunch. My dad likes to make a large bowl of salad, such as yours, on Sundays and take a little each day for lunch at work. This would be a perfect dish for something like that.
@Asif, I'm glad that you posted and commented about your eggplant parmesan recipe. For some reason, I always assumed that I needed a good chunk of time and energy to make the dish. Now I know otherwise. I'm looking forward to making it sometime soon.
@Jessica, thanks so much, love--though I couldn't have done it without Asife :) You couldn't be more right about the goodness and simplicity of fruit. When I'm at a potluck, I'll go for the yummy-looking side dishes, but mostly I find myself being drawn to the veggie and fruit platters. Seems as though I might have to take your suggestion and pair it with Aaron's strawberry fluff dip, or some homemade whipped cream. You know, this may be a little inappropriate for a potluck, but I find that my favorite breakfast these days has been blueberries/strawberries/peaches in a bowl with a little bit of milk and sprinkled sugar. Hits the spot each time.
I forgot one more thing about the falafel. For potlucks, I usually just serve it with the side of tzatziki. For meals at home though, it goes great served as a sandwich with pita bread, lettuce, tomato, chopped onions, and then the tzatziki as a sandwich dressing.
@Asif, you know, I've actually never tried falafel in a pita sandwich before. I'm going to have to try that. It also reminds me to hold T.C. to his New Year's resolution: eat a great sandwich everyday.
This looks amazing! I wonder how green onion would work with this... mmmm. :)
@Jen, That seems like a great New Year's resolution, but also a bit overwhelming. That's a lot of sandwiches.
@Caryn, That does sound like it would be pretty good. I may try adding that into the mixing stage the next time I make it.
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