Tato, mozzarella sticks, and falafel

Two days off resulted in some high stress. For no real reason, mainly just concerned that I will not be able to pull off the real estate career. Despite my best efforts. I am sure it will all come together but I just get a little anxious sometimes.

Some of the highlights of the two days off is that Tato was here. In fact, he seems to have found himself a new place to sleep. He is an interesting character.


I have been glued to the playoff games. I even got a special TV station so that I can catch all the games and news I miss while at work. It has been a lot of fun but has hindered my time and motivation for cooking. So I stole some! A shirt time ago, I saw a recipe for vegan mozzarella sticks over at Hell Yeah Its Vegan! I have been following this blog for awhile and this was great and was the perfect playoff food.

At the vegan bake sale in Cosmo's Vegan Shoppe I grabbed some Teese and tried them out. They came out great and were fairly easy to make. A great recipe!

I also made some falafel. Now, I have eaten falafel all over the county and strangely the best falafel I have ever had was in Tulsa Oklahoma. Today was the first time I had made it. Same with the tahini dressing, and they all some out awesome.

Falafel

the patties

1 can of chicpeas
2 tablespoons of chicpea flour
1 tablespoon of fresh parsley (chopped)
2 teaspoons of fresh cilantro (chopped)
2 teaspoons of lemon juice
2 teaspoons of salt
2 teaspoons of cumin
1 teaspoon of ground black pepper
1 teaspoon of garlic powder
1 teaspoon of onion powder
1 teaspoon of sesame seeds

Strain and rinse the chicpeas. In a large bowl, using a fork, mash the chicpeas. Once there are no large pieces remaining, add the remaining ingredients and mash until well blended together. Chill for 30 minutes.

In the meantime, complete the dressing portions and the prep portion of the sandwich of the falafel. Once chilled, heat frying oil (based on you pot size) to 375 degrees. You can also use the "water test" to make sure the oil is hot.

While the oil is heating, form chicpea mixture into 6 patties about twice the size of a quarter. Once the oil is hot, carefully begin to deep fry the patties. This should take about 3-5 minutes for each batch of patties.

Remove from oil and set on a paper towel to soak up some of the excess oil.


the dressing

2 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup of vegan unsweetened and unflavored yogurt
1/3 cup of cucumber (peeled)
2 tablespoons of tahini sauce
1 tablespoon of lemon juice
2 teaspoons of fresh parsley
2 teaspoons of salt
1 teaspoon of fresh cilantro
1 teaspoon of ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon of sugar

Combine all ingredients in a blender and puree until smooth. Chill.


the sandwich

2 pita breads
2 handfulls of greens
4 large slices of pickle
6 slices of cucumber
1 cup of cucumber (cubed)
3/4 cup of tomatoes (cubed)

With a sharp knife, slice the tops of the pita breads open so that you can assemble the sandwich. Gently stuff the pitas with the greens. Then add the cubed cucumber and tomatoes. Then take the chicpea patties and set 3 of them in the pita. Place the pickles and cucumber beside the patties and spoon the dressing over the top.