Pistachio Falafel with Pomegranate Salsa and Cashew Yogurt Sauce

Ok, that’s the longest blogpost title I made up so far. Just sayin’ 😀

After a bit of summer absence, I’m back on the blog with a big and warm Hello!! 🙂 Have you all been enjoying this time of the year? I was just in Hamburg for two weeks, visiting friends and family and it was really fun to catch up with everybody again. Even though we are always connected over the internet, nothing will ever replace having conversations in person and actually give real hugs instead of smileys.

 

 

Talking about staying connected… which social media channels do you guys use regularly? So far Facebook, Pinterest and a little Twitter has been my only outlets besides the blog, but then my 17 year old stepsister has brought me up to date, telling me that Instagram is far more popular than Facebook nowadays. And then I had other friends telling me the same. Is it true? Was I living behind the moon? I guess so!

 

 

I then saw myself in a distant future, not being able to communicate with my grandkids because I just didn’t keep up with technology. What a nightmare! Haha! Ok, to make it short: I’m on Instagram now. And to even be a bit ahead of the time, I also joined Periscope – the newest hype of the internet! (Thanks for recommending it Eva!)

 

 

It’s a platform/app that allows you to experience life all around the world in real time through someone else’s eyes. Pretty cool (and somewhat addictive). The other day I joined a live tour of Van Gogh’s paintings in The Metropolitan Museum in NY, I watched the beautiful sunrise of Toronto, playing dogs in San Francisco, a cool dude that travels around France talking about his experience, a lady who gives cooking advice for vegan meals… you’ll find so many different people and it’s quite fun to have a few minutes of insight into their daily life. It kinda takes Facebook up to a different level. Which is also scary, in a way. But hopefully these kind of social media platforms will only bring people around the world closer (tying to see the bright side here ;)).

 

 

But now let’s talk food! After spending quite some time in the kitchen on Saturday, I finally managed to whip up this lovely dish: pistachio falafel with pomegranate salsa and cashew yoghurt sauce. Now, does that sound good or what?

 

 

I love it!

It’s such a colorful dish, with the green of pistachios, yellows and reds from tomatoes, pink and purple sprinkles of pomegranate and red cabbage and lots of green herbs. A rainbow on the plate! Almost too pretty to roll it up in a wrap but it taste so good like that.

 

 

By the way, the combination of tomatoes and pomegranate is heavenly. Make sure to use ripe and sweet tomatoes!

 

 

So here are the recipes:

Pistachio Falafel

(makes 20-25 falafel balls)

• 200g dried chickpeas (soaked in water over night)
• 2 cloves of garlic
• half bunch of flat parsley
• half bunch of coriander
• 1 hand full of mint leafs
• 100g pistachios
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• juice of 1 lemon (3-5 tbsp)
• 1 tbsp tahini
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp flour
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1 liter neutral oil for frying ( for example peanut oil or rapeseed oil)

Soak chickpeas in water the day before preparing the falafel. Then rinse chickpeas and blend with all other ingredients until you have a grainy paste.

 

 

Roll small falafel balls with your hands, about 20-25. Now heat oil in a big pot. The oil is ready for frying when small bubbles rise when holding in a wooden spoon. Turn heat on low-medium and add falafel balls in two batches. If they are not completely in the oil, turn them half way through. Careful, the oil is super hot! Once they are golden, take them out carefully and let the fat drip off or place on a paper towel.

 

 

Pomegranate Salsa

• 400g sweet cherry tomatoes (I used mixed colors)
• 1/2 red onion
• 1 hand full of chopped coriander and flat parsley
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• seeds of half a pomegranate
• 1 tbsp lemon juice
• salt and pepper to taste
• chili to taste (optional)

Chop up the tomatoes and add the rest of the ingredients. Add salt, pepper and chili to taste.

 

Cashew Yogurt Sauce

• 180 g soy yoghurt (or other yogurt of choice)
• 3 tbsp cashew butter
• 1-2 tbsp lemon juice
• pinch of salt

Mix all ingredients in a small bowl, that’s it. 😉

 

 

Falafel Wrap

For the falafel wraps lay out a tortilla bread (or bread of choice), spread a spoon full of the sauce, add salsa and sprinkle some shredded red cabbage on top. Lay falafel balls on top and press them lightly with a fork. If you like, add some chili sauce, coriander leafs and pistachios. Now wrap it all up and enjoy!

 

 

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