These baked falafel couscous bowls are the perfect vegetarian-friendly weeknight meal that packs a lot of flavor and a ton of texture!
This recipe originally appeared on The Melrose Family blog.
Happy Monday, everyone! How was everyone’s weekend?? I have to be honest, I’m pretty sad that the weekend is over. Zach and I had a wonderful time skiing, and it’s no fun getting back to the real world! These baked falafel couscous bowls make transitioning into my weekly routine much easier though. Zach and I go kind of crazy for bowls. We make them at least once a week, using up whatever leftover veggies we have in our fridge. It’s a great way to get creative with dinner and utilize ingredients that would otherwise go bad and we would have to throw away.
So let’s talk about the amazingness that are these baked falafel couscous bowls. This recipe has become a quick favorite of mine. I’m hit or miss when it comes to ordering falafel at a restaurant. A lot of the time, it can be dry with little to no taste. This is definitely NOT the case for this falafel.
These baked falafel couscous bowls encompass all of the things I crave in a bowl. If you are anything like me, I have to have some sort of pasta, rice or quinoa. To me, it’s not a bowl if it doesn’t contain one of these three items. Second of all, a bowl has to have some sort of protein. Since these bowls are vegetarian, falafel is a great substitution for meat. Next, it’s all about the toppings. In this case, I went crazy with roasted vegetables, a creamy peanut dressing, and some mixed nuts. This is a great one you guys, and a must-make as we transition from winter into spring.
Baked Falafel Couscous Bowls
Servings:
4 -6Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Falafel
- 1 cup canned chickpeas drained and rinsed
- 1 cup fully-cooked green lentils
- ½ cup fresh parsley
- ½ cup fresh cilantro
- 4 cloves of garlic
- 1 small jalapeno seeded and stemmed, chopped
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- zest from 1 lemon
- ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- pinch of ground cayenne pepper
- pinch of ground cumin
- 2 tablespoons chickpea flour or other flour of choice
Couscous Bowls
- 1 pound of carrots peeled and sliced
- ½ head cauliflower cut into florets
- 1 large zucchini sliced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon black pepper
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- 2 cups fully-cooked Israeli couscous rice or pasta may be substituted
- 1½ cups chopped red cabbage
- ½ cup mixed nuts
- Creamy peanut dressing I used a store-bought version
Instructions
Falafel
- Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F and line a large baking sheet with foil. Spray it with a nonstick spray and set aside.
- Combine the chickpeas, lentils, parsley, cilantro, garlic, jalapeno, olive oil, lemon zest, salt, onion powder, cayenne pepper and cumin in the bowl of your food processor. Pulse until the mixture comes together and is broken down substantially (about 10-12 pulses). Fold in the chickpea flour, and then form the mixture into 8 equal-sized balls. Place them on the prepared baking sheet and place them in the oven. Bake the falafel for 20 minutes and then remove from the oven to cool slightly.
Couscous Bowls
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with foil and spray with a nonstick spray. Place the carrots, cauliflower florets, and zucchini on the prepare baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt, black pepper, and paprika. Toss the veggies to combine and then place the pan in the oven. Roast the vegetables for 25 minutes, tossing them once. Remove them from the oven.
- Prepare the baked falafel couscous bowls by layering roasted veggies, baked falafel, red cabbage, and mixed nuts on a bed of Israeli couscous. Drizzle with creamy peanut dressing (or dressing of choice). Enjoy immediately!
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3 Responses
I’ll definitely be heading over for the recipe- these falafel bowls look delicious- so colorful! Pinning :)
Very tasty meal .. Thank you
How many calories does the whole dish contain?