Tropical Chickpea Balls

I want to share with you a healthier non fried/baked vegan and plant based super healthy savory balls, inspired on the Mediterranean falafels. I usually serve them with one of my favorite passion fruit salsas to dip them in, and a fresh salad. Another option is to put everything together inside of a pita bread from Sisso Taste of Jerusalem.

Ingredients ( Serves about 6 servings of 4 units each )

• Dry chickpeas / 500 grs - Mandrys

• Onions / 1 medium unit - Finca Siberia

• Sweet pepper / 1 unit - Finca Higueron

• Garlic / 5 cloves - Finca Siberia

• Ginger / 1 medium root, about 100 grs - Finca Higueron

• Turmeric / 1 medium root, about 100 grs - Finca Higueron

• Cilantro / 1 small roll - Finca Manantial

• Celery / 2 stems - Finca Manantial

• Black pepper / 1 teaspoon - Finca Agroecologica El Encanto

• Salt / as needed Solar

• Coconut oil / 3 tablespoons - Productos de coco Punta Lagarto

• Cumin powder / 1 teaspoon

Ingredients for salsa:

• Passion fruit pulp / 2 units - Finca Siberia

• Coconut sugar or Cane regular raw sugar / 1 teaspoon - Mandrys

• Coconut milk / 1 cup - Productos de coco Punta Lagarto

• Salt / as needed Solar

• Black pepper / 1/2 teaspoon - Finca Agroecologica El Encanto

Directions

1. Cook the chickpeas until tender and let them cool aside.

2. Process them in a food processor, a strong blender or manually with the bottom of a glass bottle.

3. Shred on the most fine side the fresh turmeric and ginger.

4. Chop very fine by hand or with a food processor onion, sweet pepper, garlic cloves and celery. Chop cilantro and set it aside separately.

5. Stir fry in the coconut oil all the chopped and shredded ingredients.

6. Add salt, black pepper, cumin and cilantro at the end.

7. Mix everything together into a dough texture. Make about 24 medium balls with your hands, place them in a pan covered with coconut oil and bake them in a preheated oven for about 30 minutes in a medium temperature oven.

8. For the salsa, pass the fresh passion fruit pulp through a strainer to take out the seeds, then mix all ingredients manually with a glove or in a blender or food processor.

Suggested serving mode on the picture.

I recommend make this size of recipe and freeze before baking the amount of balls you are not consuming at that moment. Defrost and bake as in the original way when needed. Contributed by Maria Aragon