There isn't even a bad Greek restaurant in this town. And sometimes a girl just has to get her fix...
So I made my own falafel and pitas. And before my ego just explodes from how good my cooking techniques are becoming...
I'll just let you know that all you need is a food processor--and you too, can be AMAZING!
In all honesty, these are so simple and out of this world good. I mean, your husband will look at you and say, "oh, my hell these are good!" See what I mean about the ego...
They were so good I forgot to take a picture.
Falafel:
1 can chickpeas (drained)
1/2 yellow onion, roughly chopped (about 1 cup)
2 Tbs. fresh parsley
2 Tbs. fresh cilantro
1 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
4 cloves of garlic
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 c.+ flour
vegetable oil for frying
1 recipe of Soft Pita Bread (or store bought pitas-- If you're in a pinch, but don't be in a pinch)
English cucumber slices, quartered
tomato, diced
shredded romaine lettuce
1/2 red onion, sliced paper thin
Tzatziki Sauce
Directions:
Place chickpeas and onions in a food processor. Pulse until almost smooth. Add the parsley, cilantro, salt, red pepper, garlic, and cumin. Process until well-blended but not pureed.
Remove chickpea mixture and place in a bowl. Sprinkle in the baking powder and flour, and gently mix. Add enough flour so that the dough can form a small ball without being too sticky. Refrigerate, covered, while you heat the oil and chop the veggies. Mixture can easily be made several hours ahead of time.
Using a small cookie dough scoop sprayed with Pam, form the chickpea mixture into balls about the size of walnuts (you should have about 16-18 balls). Flatten between greased hands, until each ball becomes a 3 inch circle.
Heat 2 inches of oil to 350 degrees in a deep pan (I always use a candy thermometer to make sure my oil temperature stays consist ant) and fry 1 ball to test. If it falls apart, add a little flour. Then fry about 5 balls at a time for a few minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels and sprinkle with salt.
Stuff warm pita bread with 2-3 falafel balls and all vegetable toppings. Add a generous amount of ranch dressing and serve hot. (to serve with the falafels I cut each pita in half and opened them up at the seam to stuff them)
1/2 yellow onion, roughly chopped (about 1 cup)
2 Tbs. fresh parsley
2 Tbs. fresh cilantro
1 tsp. salt
3/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
4 cloves of garlic
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 c.+ flour
vegetable oil for frying
1 recipe of Soft Pita Bread (or store bought pitas-- If you're in a pinch, but don't be in a pinch)
English cucumber slices, quartered
tomato, diced
shredded romaine lettuce
1/2 red onion, sliced paper thin
Tzatziki Sauce
Directions:
Place chickpeas and onions in a food processor. Pulse until almost smooth. Add the parsley, cilantro, salt, red pepper, garlic, and cumin. Process until well-blended but not pureed.
Remove chickpea mixture and place in a bowl. Sprinkle in the baking powder and flour, and gently mix. Add enough flour so that the dough can form a small ball without being too sticky. Refrigerate, covered, while you heat the oil and chop the veggies. Mixture can easily be made several hours ahead of time.
Using a small cookie dough scoop sprayed with Pam, form the chickpea mixture into balls about the size of walnuts (you should have about 16-18 balls). Flatten between greased hands, until each ball becomes a 3 inch circle.
Heat 2 inches of oil to 350 degrees in a deep pan (I always use a candy thermometer to make sure my oil temperature stays consist ant) and fry 1 ball to test. If it falls apart, add a little flour. Then fry about 5 balls at a time for a few minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels and sprinkle with salt.
Stuff warm pita bread with 2-3 falafel balls and all vegetable toppings. Add a generous amount of ranch dressing and serve hot. (to serve with the falafels I cut each pita in half and opened them up at the seam to stuff them)
Soft Pita Bread
Makes 8 flatbreads
3 c. flour
1 1/2 c. boiling water
1/4 c. potato flour OR 1/2 c. potato flakes
1 1/4 tsp. salt
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 tsp. INSTANT yeast
Directions:
Place 2 cups of the flour into a large mixing bowl (or Kitchen Aid). Pour the boiling water over the flour, and stir till smooth. Cover the bowl and set the mixture aside for 30 minutes. This process will cook out some of the starch, making the bread very soft and pliable.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the potato flour (or flakes) and 1 cup of the remaining flour with the salt, oil and yeast. Add this to the cooled flour/water mixture, stir, then knead for several (5-7) minutes to form a soft dough. Add additional flour only if necessary-- The dough should form a ball, but will remain somewhat soft. Let the dough rise, covered, for 1 hour. (Note: Since this is a flatbread, the dough will not rise very much due to the small amount of yeast-- But it should still rise noticeably.)
Divide the dough into 8 pieces (each around 3-4 oz.-- I use my kitchen scale for this), cover, and let rest on an oiled surface for 15 to 30 minutes. Roll each piece into an 8-inch circle, and dry-fry them (fry without oil) on a griddle or frying pan over medium heat for about 2-3 minutes per side, or until they’re flecked with brown spots. Adjust the heat if they seem to be cooking either too quickly, or too slowly; cooking too quickly means they may be raw in the center, while too slowly will dry them out. Stack the cooked bread in between a soft, clean towel to keep them warm and soft. Serve immediately, or cool before storing in a plastic bag.
3 c. flour
1 1/2 c. boiling water
1/4 c. potato flour OR 1/2 c. potato flakes
1 1/4 tsp. salt
2 Tbs. vegetable oil
1 tsp. INSTANT yeast
Directions:
Place 2 cups of the flour into a large mixing bowl (or Kitchen Aid). Pour the boiling water over the flour, and stir till smooth. Cover the bowl and set the mixture aside for 30 minutes. This process will cook out some of the starch, making the bread very soft and pliable.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the potato flour (or flakes) and 1 cup of the remaining flour with the salt, oil and yeast. Add this to the cooled flour/water mixture, stir, then knead for several (5-7) minutes to form a soft dough. Add additional flour only if necessary-- The dough should form a ball, but will remain somewhat soft. Let the dough rise, covered, for 1 hour. (Note: Since this is a flatbread, the dough will not rise very much due to the small amount of yeast-- But it should still rise noticeably.)
Divide the dough into 8 pieces (each around 3-4 oz.-- I use my kitchen scale for this), cover, and let rest on an oiled surface for 15 to 30 minutes. Roll each piece into an 8-inch circle, and dry-fry them (fry without oil) on a griddle or frying pan over medium heat for about 2-3 minutes per side, or until they’re flecked with brown spots. Adjust the heat if they seem to be cooking either too quickly, or too slowly; cooking too quickly means they may be raw in the center, while too slowly will dry them out. Stack the cooked bread in between a soft, clean towel to keep them warm and soft. Serve immediately, or cool before storing in a plastic bag.
Tzatziki Sauce:
You can alter this to your taste (I like a lot more lemon juice in mine).
1 1/2 c. plain Greek yogurt (that's 2 6-oz. containers)
1 clove garlic, minced
1-2 tsp. lemon juice
3 green onions, firm ends finely chopped
1 tsp. dry dill weed
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, and thinly sliced
Combine ingredients in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste. Store covered and refrigerated for up to 3 days.
2 comments:
Hiya Rose. I agree -what this place really needs is an authentic Greek restaurant. Where I can say, "xoris chremidi," and they'll know what I mean (...no onions). Alas, we are on our own. If you like tzatziki but don't have greek yogurt handy, just put 2 cups of plain yogurt in a wire strainer lined with a damp paper towel, and let it drain over a bowl in the fridge for a few hours. Viola, a cup and a half of nice thick greek yogurt. Also, I was told (by a nice Greek grandma) that the secret to a good tzatziki is to press as much moisture out of the cucumber as you can. I grate my and press it between paper towels, but whatever. Love to taste yours sometime. Let's have dinner and I'll make pastitsio. Mmm, gettin' hungry.
Jason makes killer falafel. Yummmm.
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