Vegan pumpkin falafel in an autumn inspired bowl, with apple, potatoes, and beets. The pumpkin adds a little sweetness and keeps these baked falafel from drying out, and serving them in a bowl makes everything a bit better.
Preheat your oven to 200°C (400°F) and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Place the pumpkin into the bowl of a food processor and pulse until it's pureed.
1 1/2 cups roasted pumpkin
Add the onion, garlic, ginger, turmeric, and spices, and pulse until finely chopped and incorporated.
1 medium onion, 3 cloves garlic, 3 cm piece ginger, 2 cm piece turmeric**, 1 teaspoon ground cumin, 1/4 teaspoon hot pepper flakes, Salt and pepper to taste
Add the olive oil, apple cider vinegar, tahini, oats, and chickpeas, and pulse again until the chickpeas are broken down into mostly small pieces (the occasional whole chickpea is fine) and you have a mixture that holds together when pressed.
2 tablespoons olive oil, 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, 1 tablespoon tahini paste, 1/3 cup rolled oats, 1 1/2 cup chickpeas
Form ping-pong sized balls of falafel and place about 3 cm (1.2 inches) apart on the baking sheet. You may need to wet your hands every once in a while to keep the mixture from sticking to your fingers. Bake at 200°C for 25-30 minutes, or until golden.
Serve hot, or leave to cool completely on a cooling rack and then keep them in the fridge for up to three days. They're best fresh and pretty good cold, but tend to dry out a little when they're reheated, so I suggest eating leftovers cold in a wrap or pita.
Fall Nourish Bowl
Preheat the oven to 200°C (400°F) and line a baking sheet with paper.
Wash and slice the beets and potatoes in 1 cm (0.4 inches) slices. Drizzle some heat-safe oil and sprinkle some salt over them and turn a couple of times to coat. Roast for 35-40 minutes, or until the potatoes are golden.
2 medium beets, 2 medium yellow-flesh potatoes
To assemble the bowls, place half of the ingredients in each bowl, top with the dip, and drop a few pomegranate arils onto each one if you're using them.
In a bowl, mix all of the ingredients except for the honey until combined. Then add the honey and stir until it's just incorporated.
1/4 cup tahini paste, 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar, 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon dijon mustard, 1/2 teaspoon honey/maple syrup, Salt and pepper to taste
If you mix for too long with the honey, the dip will no longer be smooth as liquid sweetener will cause seed and nut pastes to solidify (you can see in the pictures that I stirred just a little too long). It won't taste different, it just won't look as appealing.
Notes
• To roast the pumpkin, cut it in half and remove the seeds. Place the halves cut side down on a paper-lined baking sheet and bake at 175C / 350F for about an hour, or until easily pierced with a fork. Scoop out the required amount for this recipe and either freeze the rest or use it for another recipe. • I usually put the chickpeas in water when I'm making dinner the day before so I don't forget. * If you can't get fresh turmeric, you can omit it or substitute 1/2 teaspoon powdered turmeric.