Halloween Falafel Spiders

Whether you make these scary falafel spiders for Halloween or make just the falafel patties for a party, you will never go out for falafel again. Other than the soaking and frying, these homemade falafels are an easy, delicious vegan treat and so worth the effort. I always make extra and freeze the dough.

How to make falafel

Drain soaked chickpeas and defrosted fava beans. Place them in a food processor along with onion, garlic, cilantro, parsley, cumin, coriander, chili powder, crumbled bread and baking powder. Grind to a coarse dough.

Form the falafel dough into balls, and flatten each ball a little. Fry in hot oil till golden. Flip the falafel gently and brown the other side.

How to make scary falafel spiders – a vegan halloween idea

Insert green pepper strips for spider legs. Apply hummus or cream cheese using a toothpick where the eyes and mouth should be. Stick olive pieces for the eyes and red pepper strip for the mouth.

Boo!

Note: Egyptian style falafel uses fava beas (also called broad beans). I love fava beans in falafel, but I also enjoy the texture of the soaked chickpeas. So I use 2/3rds chickpeas and 1/3rd fava beans in this falafel recipe.

I use frozen, shelled fava beans. If you cant find this, use ¼ cup dried, shelled fava beans and soak them over night along with the chickpeas. If you cant find or dont like fava beans, simply use 1/4th cup extra of dried chickpeas.

Dont be tempted to use canned chickpeas, dried chickpeas or garbanzo beans that have been soaked over night are the best.

If you dont want to make these falafels into spiders, simply serve them with pita bread, hummus, tahini, tomato slices and lettuce.

More falafel recipes..
A favorite falafel recipe using chickpeas only on epicurious
An easy falafel recipe on the hummus blog
Arab levant falafel recipe using fava beans by Clifford Wright
Egyptian falafel recipe
Fava bean and chickpea falafel with sumac recipe by the amazing Meeta

Halloween Falafel Spiders Recipe

Makes 8 falafels

For the falafel
½ cup dried chickpeas or grabanzo beans
½ cup frozen, skinned fava beans, defrosted. Substtute with an additional 1/4th cup dried chickpeas.
½ small onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, peeled
¼ cup (loosely packed) chopped cilantro
¼ cup (loosely packed) chopped parsley
½ teaspoon cayenne or chili powder (use less for milder falafel)
¾ teaspoon cumin powder
½ teaspoon coriander powder
¼ teaspoon baking powder
2 tablespoons crumbled stale bread
½ teaspoon, or to taste, salt

Oil for frying

Place the chickpeas in a bowl, and fill with water. Soak the chickpeas overnight (about 8-10 hours).

After soaking, drain the chickpeas well and place them on several layers of paper towels. Place the defrosted, skinned  fava beans on the paper towels as well. Dab the chickpeas and fava beans dry.

Place the drained, uncooked chickpeas, and the defrosted fava beans in a food processor. Add all other ingredients, except the oil,  to the food processor. Don’t add water. Pulse till it forms slightly coarse dough (see pictures above). Sprinkle a little water if the mixture is too dry. If it is too wet, add more bread pieces and pulse again.

Divide the dough into 8 equal parts. Form each part into a ball and flatten a little.

Heat oil in a skillet. Pour enough oil so that a falafel will submerge in oil half way (see pictures). When the oil is hot, test a small drop of falafel dough by dropping it into the oil. It should sizzle and float to the top of the oil. If it doesn’t sizzle and sinks, oil is not hot enough. If it gets too brown or black quickly, the oil is too hot.

Place the falafels, a few at a time, into the oil. When one side is browned, carefully flip the falafel and brown the other side. Remove to a plate lined with paper towels.

Serve falafels with hummus, tahini sauce, sliced tomatoes, lettuce, and pita bread.

For falafel spiders
8 falafels (recipe above)
1 small red pepper
2 medium green pepper
3-4 black olives
1 teaspoon hummus or cream cheese
A sharp knife
A tooth pick

Cut the red pepper in half, and remove the inner white membrane. Using a sharp knife, carve out a shape that looks like the spiders mouth. Cut out 8 mouths.

Cut each green pepper into 8 thin rings. Cut each ring into half. These are the spider legs.

Cut each olive into half lengthwise. Cut each half into 3 semi circles. These are the spider’s eyes.

Place a falafel on a serving platter. Take the green pepper legs and insert them into the sides of the falafels to look like spider legs.

Using a tooth pick, dot a little hummus or cream cheese where the eyes and mouth should be. The hummus or cream cheese will act as the glue. Then carefully place the olives for eyes and the red pepper for a mouth. Dot a little more hummus or cream cheese over the olive eyes.

Paneer and Tomato Curry

What an amazing weekend it was! Three childhood friends visited me, and we spent the weekend chatting, catching up and having a great time (N, I am still thinking of your amazing  lychee martinis!).

When my dear friend Santha wrote to me requesting this paneer tomato curry recipe, I was flooded with memories of school lunch times and all the wonderful food we used to share from our little tiffin carriers. I was somewhat famous for this curry back in school. I’d take this dish and rotis for lunch every Friday. And I always had to take extra because it was so popular with my classmates. So I decided to make this curry for my friends for our ‘reuinion’ weekend. 

Santha, this is for you ♥

Make sure you use ripe, juicy tomatoes. Canned tomatoes are ok, but you will get the best results if you use high quality canned tomatoes like Muir Glen or San Marzano.

Paneer is an Indian cottage cheese, easily available at Indian stores. For this recipe, you can buy raw paneer and shallow fry it yourself, or you can buy pre-fried packaged paneer (which what I use). Nanak brand paneer is quite good.  Store bought paneer can be quite compacted and hard, so you need to soak it in hot water to soften it a bit.

Daily meals has a tomato paneer curry recipe using garam masala. Mahanandi blog has a paneer tomato recipe as well. Be sure to checkout Local eater blog’s delicious tomato paneer curry recipe from Madhur Jaffrey’s world vegetarian cookbook.

Paneer Tomato Curry Recipe

Serves about 10

For the tomato gravy
6 large, ripe, juicy tomatoes
1 tablespoon oil
¼ teaspoon black mustard seeds, optional
1/2 teaspoons cumin seeds
1 medium onion, chopped fine
½ teaspoon turmeric powder
1 teaspoon cumin powder
½ teaspoon or to taste, chili powder
Salt
1 tablespoon tomato ketchup. Use less if you want a less sweet gravy.

For the fried paneer
2 cups cubed paneer*
A large bowl filled with very hot, salted water

Make the gravy
Remove the core of the tomatoes. Quarter the cored tomatoes and place in a blender, along with 2 cups of water. Puree until the tomatoes have become a very smooth sauce. You should have about 8 cups of puree. Set this aside.

In a large saucepan, heat the oil. Add mustard and cumin seeds. When the mustard starts to splutter, add the chopped onion. Cook on medium-low heat till the onion is soft. Add turmeric, cumin and chili powders. Stir for a few seconds.

Then carefully pour in the pureed tomatoes. Bring the gravy to a boil. Then reduce heat and let the curry simmer on low heat for about 20 minutes or till the curry has reduced a little and you can no longer smell raw tomatoes. Add more water if needed.

Fry the paneer
While the tomato gravy is simmering, work on the paneer.

Fill a large bowl with very hot water. Add salt to the water, and set the bowl near you.

Heat oil in a pan and shallow fry the paneer cubes in batches.Flip the the paneer around so that all sides are lightly golden. Remove paneer cubes from the oil using a slotted spoon and place the fried paneer in the hot salted water. Be careful when doing this, the oil in the paneer will splutter when it hits the water.  Repeat this with all the paneer cubes. Let the fried paneer sit in the hot water for about 15 minutes.

*Use the above method if you are frying your own paneer. Alternatively, you could use store bought, pre-fried paneer. Simply open up the package and dunk it in the bowl with hot salted water. Let it sit for 20 minutes; then proceed with the recipe.

If you are using homemade paneer, soak it in the hot water after frying for only 10 minutes. (Store-bought paneer is harder and needs to soak longer).

When the tomato gravy is ready, drain the paneer cubes from the water, and add to the gravy.  Add salt to taste. Increase heat to medium, and let it cook for about 5 minutes.

Then stir in ketchup and turn off heat. Garnish with chopped cilantro.

Serve paneer and tomato curry with rotis or chapatis.

Tuscan Kale and Chickpea Pasta

Pasta e fagioli or pasta with beans is a traditional Italian dish. It is usually made with pasta and cannellini or white beans in a tomato sauce. I took inspiration from the pasta+bean concept and turned it into a hearty main dish of pasta, chickpeas and wilted kale.

The easiest way to wilt the kale for this dish is to dunk it into the pasta cooking water just before you are ready to drain the pasta. Then drain the pasta and kale together. Add any kind of fresh greens you like. Vegans can simply leave out the parmesan in this dish.

This goes to Presto Pasta Nights hosted by the lovely Claire of Chez Cayenne.

Tuscan Kale and Chickpea Pasta

serves 4-6

One 14 oz box of whole grain pasta (I used Barilla whole grain rotini)
12 large leaves Tuscan kale or any other variety of Kale, about 2 cups when shredded

4 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
Crushed red peppers, to taste
4 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
2 tablespoons bottled, pickled capers + 2 tablespoons caper juice      
2 cups of drained, rinsed, canned chickpeas
1/4th cup dry white wine, optional
1/2 cup water
½ cup grated parmesan cheese

In a large pot, bring plenty of water to boil. Generously salt the water. When the water reaches a rolling boil, add the pasta, and cook till pasta is al dente. Make sure pasta doesn’t over-cook.

While pasta is cooking, rinse the kale, and remove the tough ribs. Stack the kale leaves, roll up the stack, and cut into thin shreds. Set shredded kale aside.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Add onion and cook on medium heat till the onion softens, about 5 minutes. Then add crushed red pepper, and garlic. Cook 30 seconds. Add capers, caper juice from the bottle, chickpeas and white wine, if using. Let the mixture boil.

When most the wine has evaporated, add the water. Cook on medium-low heat for about 2 minutes, while mashing some of the chickpeas. Add more water for a thinner sauce.  Stir in parmesan and turn off heat. Taste and add salt if needed. You may not need salt for this sauce because the capers and the parmesan are quite salty.

When the pasta is almost done, dunk the shredded kale into the pasta pot. Let the pasta and kale boil for about 10 seconds. Drain the pasta and kale.

Toss the drained pasta and kale with the chickpea mixture. Serve immediately with extra parmesan for sprinkling.

Pumpkin Halwa with Saffron

Diwali is the Indian festival of lights. We celebrate by wearing new clothes, lighting fire crackers and exchanging sweets. With Diwali around the corner, here is a recipe that celebrates both the Indian festival and the beautiful fall season here in America.

Halwa, also called halva, halveh, helwa, or  halvah is a sweet usually made with semolina or wheat in south Asia and using nuts in the middle east. Carrot halwa is also common in India. In this recipe, I use butternut squash instead of the carrots. You can use either rose water or saffron in this recipe for flavoring. I chose saffron.

Traditional halwa uses khoa or khoya or mawa (milk that is cooked down so most the moisture is evaporated). This adds texture and richness to halwa. I use almond meal instead of khoya. Almond meal adds great flavor and helps thicken the halwa.

Be sure to take a look at Mahanandi’s pumpkin halwa using butternut squash. En Samayal Arai blog has a pumpkin halwa recipe using yellow pumpkin. Manta’s Kitchen has a pumpkin halwa or kaddu ka halwa recipe. BBC Food’s recipe for pumpkin halwa can also be used with carrots, zucchini or any gourds.

Vegans can try this recipe with coconut milk or almond milk. Earth vegan blog has a vegan carrot halwa recipe using almond milk.

For a great video on halwa making technique, watch Vah Chef’s carrot halwa video.

Pumpkin Halwa Recipe

serves 6-8

1 small butternut squash or any winter squash or pumpkin (weighing about 1.5 lb or 4 cups when grated)
4 tablespoons butter or ghee
2 tablespoons cashew nuts
2 tablespoons raisins
4 cardamom pods, lightly crushed
1 cup low fat milk
½ cup sweetened condensed milk
2 tablespoons almond meal or ground almonds
A pinch of salt
¼ teaspoon saffron

Peel the butternut squash or pumpkin using a vegetable peeler or sharp knife. Halve it and scoop out the seeds and membrane. Cut it into large chunks. Using the coarse side of a box grater, grate the chunks. (A food processor will make the grating easier). You should have about 4 cups of grated squash.

Heat the butter or ghee in a large, wide, non-stick skillet. Add cashews, raisins, and cardamom. When the cashews get golden, add the grated butternut squash or pumpkin. Cook, stirring for about 2 minutes on medium heat.

Add the milk and condensed milk. Cook uncovered on medium heat for 15 minutes or till the squash is cooked, but still holding its shape. Stir the halwa occasionally so that it doesn’t burn or stick to the pan.

Add almond meal and cook another 4 minutes. The halwa is done when it has thickened and the liquid is no longer runny. The halwa will get firmer when cool. Add the salt and saffron at the end of cooking.

Cool the halwa a little, then shape into balls (optional). Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Yogurt Cornbread with Chipotle and Sweet Corn Niblets

 

This is a spicy version of regular corn bread. I used less sugar because I don’t like my corn bread sweet. Use up to 4 tablespoons sugar in this recipe for a sweet corn bread.

The yogurt here adds a mild tang and makes the corn bread fluffy and gorgeous. Buttermilk will work too. And I love the little pieces of sweet corn all through this bread.

For a different twist on this, use semolina instead of cornmeal. For a vegan corn bread try this vegan cornbread recipe on the post punk kitchen.

This yogurt corn bread with chipotle and sweet corn will be perfect served with my Brazilian style black bean and smoked tofu stew. Simply recipes has an amazing green chile cornbread recipe with sweet corn. 101 cookbooks has a firecracker cornbread recipe using buttermilk and red pepper flakes.

Yogurt Cornbread with Chipotle and Sweet Corn Niblets

serves 4-6

Dry ingredients
1 cup stone ground yellow cornmeal
¾ cup all purpose flour
2 chipotle chiles in adobo sauce, chopped (use less if you don’t want it too spicy)
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1 cup canned, drained, sweet corn
½ teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon sugar (this is less sweet than traditional corn bread, use up to 4 tablespoons sugar for a sweeter dish)
½ teaspoon salt

Wet ingredients
1 cup non-fat yogurt
2 large eggs
4 tablespoons softened butter

Pre heat oven to 400f

Place all dry ingredients in a bowl and mix well. In another bowl, whisk together all the wet ingredients. Add the whisked mixture to the dry ingredients. Using a spatula, fold the batter gently just until combined. Don’t over mix.

Pour into a square 8×8 cake pan. Sprinkle a tablespoon of corn on top (optional). Bake 20-30 minutes or till a tooth pick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let the corn bread cool a little before cutting into squares. Serve with Brazilian style black bean and smoked tofu stew.

Brazilian Style Black Bean and Smoked Tofu Stew (Vegan Feijoada)

 

Feijoada is a popular Brazilian stew of cured meats and black beans. This Brazilian national dish relies heavily on meat for flavor and texture. In my vegan version of Feijoada, I add smoked tofu instead of the meats and use paprika and cumin for extra flavor. I admit this is not an authentic Brazilian dish, but it is certainly tasty and filling. Serve with rice or chipotle corn bread on a chilly night.

If you cant find smoked tofu, just use regular, firm tofu and add a few drops of liquid smoke to your stew. If you don’t want to use tofu for whatever reason, substitute it with another kind of bean (kidney beans or white beans), or TVP or tempeh, or store bought veggie crumbles (like Morningstar). Check out this Brazilian black bean stew with sweet potatoes on Allrecipes. Martha Stewart has a Cuban black bean stew. Vegkitchen features a vegetarian feijoada or brazilian black bean stew

This goes to Chef in you’s AWED Brazil event hosted by Sara’s Corner.

Brazilian Style Black Bean and Smoked Tofu Stew (Vegan Feijoada)

Serves 2

For the smoked tofu
4 oz smoked tofu (I used Soyboy brand), cut into small cubes (about ½ cup when cubed)
1 tablespoon olive oil

For the stew
½ tablespoon olive oil
1 small onion, chopped finely
1 small carrot, peeled and chopped finely
1 green or red bell pepper, chopped finely
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons cumin powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon dried oregano or Italian seasoning
One 15 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed (or 1 ½ cups cooked black beans)
3 cups water
Salt

Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan. Add the tofu cubes and cook on medium-high heat till the tofu is browned and crispy – about 6 minutes. Remove the tofu from the pan and set aside.

In the same pan, heat ½ tablespoon olive oil. Add onion, carrot and bell pepper. Sauté on medium heat till the vegetables are soft, about 5 minutes. Add minced garlic and stir for 30 seconds. Add cumin, paprika, and oregano. Stir for about 20 seconds.

Add the black beans, water and salt. Bring the stew to a boil. Then reduce heat to low, and simmer uncovered for about 30 minutes or till most the liquid has evaporated. Mash some of the black beans using the back of a wooden spoon. Add the reserved tofu and cook another 5 minutes.

Top with your choice of chopped tomatoes, red onion, parsley, cilantro, orange zest, sour cream or grated cheese. Serve with my yogurt cornbread with chipotle and sweet corn niblets.

Cauliflower and Broccoli Poriyal with Lentils and Coconut

A poriyal is a beautiful, simple way to enjoy fresh vegetables. This south Indian stir fry (kinda!) usually involves tempering mustard seeds, cumin seeds, chillies and or curry leaves and then adding chopped vegetables - quick, easy and healthy.

I like to add some split mung beans or moong dal to my poriyals for extra body and protein. I also leave the broccoli and cauliflower slightly undercooked so that they are a tad crunchy; over cooking fresh vegetables just doesnt let their flavor shine through. Serve this with rice and pineapple rasam or collard greens dal.

Cauliflower and Broccoli Poriyal with Lentils and Coconut Recipe

serves 6-8 as a side dish

for the lentils
1/4 cup split mung beans (moong dal)
a pinch of turmeric

other ingredients
2 cups of broccoli florets
2 cups of cauliflower florets
1 tablespoon oil
1/2 teaspoon black mustard seeds
2-3 dried red chillies, or according to taste
a few curry leaves
1/8 teaspoon asafoetida
4 tablespoon fresh grated coconut (I use fresh-frozen, grated coconut available at the Asian store. The ones from Thailand are good.)
salt

Bring 3 cups water to a boil in a pot. Add moong dal, turmeric and salt and let it boil till the lentils are cooked through but still holding their shape. Drain well.

Cut the broccoli and cauliflower into tiny florets as seen in the photos. Heat oil in a wok and add mustard seeds. When they splutter, add the dried red chillies, curry leaves, and asafoetida. Cook for about 30 seconds. Then add cauliflower, broccoli and salt. Cook on medium heat till the vegetables are cooked but still slightly crunchy. If needed, sprinkle some water while cooking the vegetables.

Add the cooked lentils and coconut, stir well, and turn off heat.

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