Falafel is a sort of ‘veggie burger’ made from chickpeas, herbs and spices. It might sound dull but it tastes great! It’s a fab protein replacement should you be aiming to reduce you meat intake. It’s versitile; have it in wrap, with a salad or as it is dipped in a raita.

It’s really easy and quick to make too. You can make up the batter and store it in the freezer until you’re ready to cook it, or cook up a batch and store in the freezer too.

Ingredients (Make 6)

• 2 tbsp coconut oil
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• 1 garlic clove, crushed
• 400g (pre-cooked or tinned) chickpeas, rinsed and drained
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• Handful of parsley, chopped
• 1 tbsp apple puree (or 1 tsp xylitol)
• 1 egg, beaten

Heat 1 tbsp of coconut oil in a pan and saute the onion and garlic until softened. Add this and the remaining ingredients (not including the remaining coconut oil) into a food processor. Blend until almost smooth. If you do not had a food processor you can simply mash the ingredients together.

Create 6 burger shaped patties. You can roll them into balls but they are more difficult to cook thoroughly this way. They can be oven baked, but tend to go too dry and therefore crumble. I recommend frying.

Heat the remaining coconut oil in a pan. Fry the falafel on a medium heat for 3 minutes on each side. When done the falafel with be firm and golden brown.

Best eaten immediately, but also great cold.