Things that make you go...Mmmm

Dudes. I totally just made falafel at home. Okay, okay. If you want to get all "technical" I made falafel from a boxed mixture I bought at Hillers. But it's local (Dearborn, MI), and it's all natural with no preservatives, so that's sort of like I made it, right? Either way, I think it fits just fine into Food Rules.

Falafel mix My new copy of Food Rules

For the falafel itself, I had to make some modifications. The box said 1 cup mix to 1 cup water, then let it sit for 30 minutes. Well I did just that, and 45 minutes later, it was still sort of a wet mess. So I added more mixture, stirred it up, and took a bath while I was waiting. After another 30 minutes, still too wet! So I resorted to stirring in some brown rice. Oh baby, that worked! And I totally think you can't taste the rice at all, and quite honestly, I enjoy the change in texture. The Mister thinks the rice may have muted the flavor a bit though. Anyway, you mix up some falafel goo, spoon it out into patties, then drop those babies into some hot canola oil. I actually froze my patties a little bit beforehand so they'd hold their shape. Here's what they look like a-frying.

Falafel oil bathFinished falafel

I also made my own hummus to accompany the falafel's for our sandwiches. A can of chickpeas from TJ's, about 1 tsp of tahini paste, the juice of 1/2 a lemon, 1 clove of garlic, some sea salt, and a whir in my Kitchen Aid. It's that simple, and man o man, tasty! Here's all the various accoutrements for our dinner.

Makings of falafel sandwichMmm, falafel taco??

I'm sort of proud of myself for making and eating this meal at home, as opposed to going out to Jerusalem Garden like I always do when I have the craving. While my meal doesn't quite compare to my favorite at JG (I was also missing my favorite fatoush!), it'll do in a pinch. For all my veggie friends out there, check it out. I don't think you'll be disappointed if this picky-pants approves.