Baked Falafel Sliders with Tabbouleh and Maple Tahini Sauce recipe

We’ve transformed a typically un-fun food like falafels and made mini pita sliders that are injected with lots of fresh ingredients and tons of flavour. Adding mushrooms and almond meal make these little morsels moist and the creamy maple tahini sauce might just be your new favourite dip for all kinds of things. These gluten-free baked falafels would also be a great protein-packed lunch without the pita and eaten as a salad with the hemp tabbouleh.

Makes: 14 sliders
Prep Time: 15 mins
Cook Time: 35 mins

Recipe from Food Network Canada

Ingredients for Baked Falafels:

1 tablespoon ground flax
3 tablespoons water
1 cup finely chopped mushrooms
½ cup finely chopped yellow onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 x 398 ml can chickpeas (1 ¾ cups)
¼ cup vegetable stock
3 teaspoons lemon juice
¼ cup curly parsley leaves
½ cup almond meal
1/3 cup chickpea flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon chili powder
½ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon ground pepper

Ingredients for Hemp Tabbouleh:
2 cups curly parsley
¼ cup finely chopped red onion
¼ cup diced tomato
3 tablespoons hemp hearts
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice
sea salt and ground pepper to taste

Ingredients for Maple Tahini Sauce:
¼ cup tahini
¼ cup water
3 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon sea salt

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. Combine ground flax with water and refrigerate for 10 minutes to allow the mixture to thicken.
3. In a pan heated to medium, sauté mushroom and onion in olive oil for 3 minutes. Then add garlic and cook for another minute.
4. Add this mushroom and onion mixture to a food processor along with rinsed and drained chickpeas, the thickened flax and water mixture, and remaining falafel ingredients. Process until everything is well combined and the mixture comes together as a thick batter.
5. Take approximately 1½ tablespoons of the mixture and form balls. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet.
6. Bake for 30 minutes, flipping the falafels half way through.

While the falafels are baking, prepare hemp tabbouleh and maple tahini sauce.

7. For the tabbouleh, finely chop parsley leaves and add to a bowl along with remaining ingredients and stir to combine.
8. For the maple tahini sauce place all the ingredients in a high-powered blender and combine until smooth.
9. Warm up the mini pitas in the oven during the last couple minutes of baking the falafels.
10. To assemble the falafel sliders, cut mini pitas in half and spread maple tahini sauce on the inside of the bottom half. Place hemp tabbouleh on top, then a falafel, and dollop with more maple tahini sauce. Serve immediately.

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