That's not cake, or frosting, and that's DEFINITELY not sprinkles.

Partially inspired by my recent adventures in yogurt-making, but mostly because of my love for chickpeas, I decided to make falafel “cupcakes.” They’re really just baked falafel in foil cupcake wrappers, with some homemade cucumber-yogurt sauce on top, but they’re tasty and they qualify.

Not pictured: totally awesome fluffy pitas, which do not add to the cupcake illusion, hence the non-inclusion.

Like most vegetarians (and many omnivores) I really love falafel. It’s awesome stuff. So I thought it deserved a little tribute and a little special treatment. Plus the first and only other time I’ve tried to make them at home they fell apart in the frying pan (and then exploded all over the inside of the microwave when I heated up the leftovers of what I’d managed to salvage).

Parsley, chickpeas, cumin, yogurt, cucumber...what more could you want?

I’m going to make another batch of these in the next couple days and may season them a bit more. I don’t think I’d feel that way if I hadn’t had some crazy-flavorful falafel in New York. You can’t really buy fresh falafel around here so making my own is my only option. Fresh parsley goes a long way towards helping, as does copious amounts of cumin. And then there’s the super awesome yogurt sauce. Which I will definitely be making with every batch of falafel from now on.

Falafel “Cupcakes” with Cucumber-Yogurt “Icing”

Paprika sprinkles!

First, Make the Falafel:

1. 15-20 oz. chickpeas, cooked & drained (canned is fine)
2. 1 small onion, chopped
3. 1/2 tsp chopped garlic
4. 1 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
5. 2 Tbsp AP flour
6. 1 tsp ground coriander
7. 1 tsp ground cumin
8. 1/2 tsp baking powder
9. Salt & pepper
10. Pinch cayenne pepper
11. 2 Tbsp olive oil

Preheat the oven to 350. Drizzle the oil in a large, shallow baking dish and set aside.

Mash the chickpeas and blend in the onion and garlic. Add the remaining ingredients to form a thick paste. Shape into golf ball-sized balls and place, evenly-spaced, inside the baking dish. Bake 18-22 minutes, turning halfway through baking. Place on a plate lined with paper towels to soak up excess oil.

Then, Make the “Icing”:

1. 1 cup plain yogurt, preferably strained/Greek-style
2. 1/2 cup shredded cucumber, drained
3. 1 lime, zested & juiced, with juice divided
4. 1/2 tsp ground cumin
5. 1/2 tsp salt
6. Paprika, for sprinkling

Combine all ingredients except paprika in a medium bowl and mix well. Keep refrigerated.

Place each falafel ball into a small foil cupcake wrapper and top with a generous amount of yogurt sauce. Sprinkle with paprika.

I am planning on a second entry this month (with actual cake involved!) but it’s going to take a bit of experimentation. There are components I need to make for the first time, not to mention I don’t have the proper equipment to make the kind of cakes I want. It’ll be an adventure!

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I saw a yummy-looking dish over at the kitchn, and decided that before the Meyer lemons disappeared for the rest of the year I’d have to make it. So I bookmarked it, and thought of it any time I had some lemons or passed the mascarpone in the store. But only a little…and every time I thought of it, my brain changed it, like a game of telephone.

Hello, food. I miss you.

And what was once Meyer lemon, mascarpone, spinach, hazelnuts and spaghetti turned into Meyer lemon, mascarpone, spinach, fresh basil, chickpeas and fresh homemade pasta.

Those are some fat noodles!

I haven’t made pasta before, aside from the last Daring Bakers Challenge, but really wanted to practice making it some more. I originally intended to make fettuccine, but since I don’t have a pasta machine I did everything by hand and couldn’t get the dough thin enough. In fact, I’m going to mix the dough in my Kitchenaid the next time I make pasta. I don’t have the height or the strength to knead pasta dough as well as I’d like.

Even though the pasta took some effort, I think this was worth it, and letting the dough rest every once in a while over the afternoon helped a lot. Then all I had to do was zest and juice the lemon and cook everything up together!

Homemade Noodles with Meyer Lemon and Mascarpone

Giant flakes of shaved parmesan are optional, but extra-good if you like things extra-cheesy.

First, Make the Noodles:

2 cups flour

2 eggs

Pinch of salt

Up to 1/4 cup lukewarm water

Sift the flour onto a clean work surface. Make a well in the middle and add the eggs and salt. Using clean hands, combine the eggs and flour, making sure not to let the eggs escape. Do your best to knead the ingredients into a cohesive dough, and dribble a few drops of water onto the dough as needed to help the dough form. Continue kneading until you have a smooth ball of dough. OR, do this in a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment. Allow the dough to rest, lightly covered with plastic wrap for 1-3 hours. Divide dough into fourths. Use a rolling pin (preferably a pastry roller) to roll the pasta dough out as thin as possible, allowing it to rest for 10 minutes at a time if it becomes uncooperative. Or roll out in a pasta machine. If not using a pasta machine, cut into thin noodles with a long, sharp knife. Lay noodles out flat on the work surface, or hang, until dry.

Then, Put it All Together!:

Zest & juice of 1 Meyer lemon

Small handful of fresh basil

1/2 cup mascarpone cheese

Dried handmade pasta

1 cup cooked (or drained canned) chickpeas

5-6 oz. fresh baby spinach, washed & dried

Ground nutmeg, to taste

Black pepper, to taste

Freshly shaved parmesan, if desired

Set a medium-large pot of salted water on to boil. Combine lemon, basil and cheese in a small bowl and mix well. Once the water boils, add the pasta and cook for 3-5 minutes, or until cooked through but still firm. Set aside about 1/2 cup pasta water and drain the pasta. Return the pasta to the pot over low-medium heat and add the lemon-mascarpone mixture and chickpeas, then add the spinach a handful at a time, stirring constantly. Once the spinach is wilted, season with nutmeg and pepper, sprinkle with shaved parmesan and serve immediately.

I would definitely make this again, and I definitely recommend it to anyone who likes pasta, lemon, cheese, basil…basically everything awesome. You could use a different bean or a nut in place of the chickpeas (pine nuts would be yummy, or pistachios…ooh or cannellinis) but I’d probably use the chickpeas again because they are truly the greatest beans.

ANYWAY

This is a dish I really love to make in the fall and early winter, because it’s POMEGRANATE SEASON!  I love pomegranates for many reasons – their theological amd historical significance, their gorgeous red hue and their roundness and heft, their bizarre and oddly poetic resemblance to the human heart, and, of course, their juicy, tangy-sweet kernels.  Not to mention the pomegranate is one of the offical “fad superfoods” due to its high level of antioxidants (I think it bumped blueberries off, though the goji berry is number one at the time…it’s like a yearly thing, it seems).

This recipe is one I found online a while ago when trying to find a tasty use for pomegranates besides savoring the plain seeds victoriously after the lengthy fight to get them out.  Or…was it while I was searching for couscous recipes?  I don’t remember, but it doesn’t matter since I love both!

Yummy!

As a vegetarian, I love dishes that are relatively quick and easy, filling and packed with nutrients, and this fits that description nicely.  Besides the antioxidants from the pomegranates, there’s a healthy dose of fiber and protein in a serving of this, along with a little vitamin C, some B vitamins, iron…lots of phenomenal stuff.

The only change I could see someone else doing to it (and something I might experiment with next time I make it) would be to add something to make it a little spicy.  I haven’t really explored tons of spices or anything yet, I’m still trying to figure out exactly what I like and what goes with what.  If someone else were to make this and make any changes, I’d love to hear the results!

Yummy Minted Pomegranate Couscous

1 1/2 cups water

1 Tbsp olive oil

1/4 tsp cinnamon

pinch salt

1 cup uncooked couscous

1 Tbsp chopped fresh mint

2 Tbsp roughly chopped unsalted pistachios

1/4 cup pomegranate seeds

2 tsp lemon zest

optional: about 10 oz. (2/3 standard can) canned chickpeas, rinsed & drained

Boil water in a covered medium saucepan.  When it’s at a rolling boil, add cinnamon, oil and salt.  Stir in the couscous, cover and remove from heat.  Let it stand for 5-10 minutes or until the water is fully absorbed.  Transfer to a large bowl and fluff with a fork.  Add the other ingredients and mix well.  Serve hot.

This makes about 4 big bowlfuls, but would be a good side for some kind of maybe Greek- or Middle Eastern-style chicken, which is on my to-figure-out-how-to-make list.  Whenever I reheat it (which works fine) I always add a little extra cinnamon and some lemon juice before eating.

I can almost smell it...

I absolutely recommend adding the chickpeas.  They’re the tastiest little member of the bean family, and so cute!

Everything seems to go really well together in this dish – the lemon sets up a nice background for the pomegranate to pop against, and the pistachios make the chickpeas more satisfying by way of texture: a nice slight crunch to round out their creamy nuttiness.  A nice colorful antidote to the gray cold months ahead!