There’s a running joke that I’ve wanted to make falafel waffle only because it rhymes with itself and is fun to say. Well, this month, the joke comes to life. I finally learned how to make falafel, and then I made it into a waffle.
First, I’m gonna show off my new toy. This is a Cuisinart Waffle Iron. This is not the one Alton Brown recommends, but it’s round and metal, like how he recommends. For $30, you can’t go wrong.
For the falafel, I used this recipe (for no other reason than because it was the most highly rated recipe on Google). The recipe says to use dried garbanzo beans, but for some reason, those are hard to find in Seattle. So I used canned garbanzos, twice as much canned than dried by weight.
For the waffle iron, you’ll want to use a little more than half a cup. This is enough to get most of the way out to the edges of the waffle iron without spilling over. With a half recipe, you can make 3 waffles.
Sunday, March 13, 2016 – The first time I tried making falafel waffle, I just followed the recipe straight up (well, other than halving it and using canned garbanzo beans), and threw it on the waffle iron on medium (“3”) for 5 min. The waffle cooked a bit unevenly. The outside crisped up (if you can call the picture the “outside”), but the inside was a little undercooked and a little airy. The flavors were definitely there though, and the waffle still held together, so it was a success, even if it wasn’t perfect.
(This is the same picture as the one up top.)
Saturday, March 26, 2016 – This time, I doubled the flour and added an egg so that the waffle would bind a bit better, make it less airy. (Note that the egg makes it non-vegan.) I also waffled it on low (“1”) for 8 minutes. You’ll see from the photo that it cooked a bit more evenly this time, without overcooking.
The flavors were pretty good. It’s not the same as a big ball of falafel that you’d get at the local Greek restaurant, but that’s what happens when you waffle it. Maybe I might add a bit more salt and pepper to give the falafel more kick, but overall, I’m happy with it.