This is the final new recipe that we have tried out this week, and is another from Jamie’s 15-Minute Meals. I’m really impressed with this book – loads of lovely dishes that you can make during the week. As with some of the recipes from 30 Minute Meals it took me longer than the book suggested, but to be honest I’ll be making them again and will get much quicker so I’m not too bothered!

I’ve never made falafels before and was a bit surprised by the texture of these, but I think that’s because I was comparing them to shop-bought, solid ones. Whilst cooking them I was worried that they would be too squishy, but they were absolutely fine so don’t worry if you feel the same. I’ll never get them to look like Jamie’s, but they tasted great!

Ingredients (serves 4)

For the falafel:
1 x 400g tin of mixed beans
1 x 400g tin of chickpeas
1 lemon
1 tbsp harissa paste
1 heaped tsp allspice
1 heaped tbsp plain flour
1 bunch of fresh coriander
Olive oil

Sides

2 mixed-colour peppers
4 spring onions
8 small tortillas (we used tortillas with herbs in for extra taste)
1 tbsp chilli sauce (or tobasco)
250g low-fat cottage cheese

Method

1. Drain the beans and chickpeas and put them into a food processor. Finely grate in the lemon zest, then add a pinch of salt and pepper, the harissa, allspice, flour and coriander stalks (reserving the leaves).

2. Blitz until smooth, scraping down the sides if needed. Scrape out the mixture and then use clean, wet hands to quickly divide and shape it into 8 patties about 1.5cm thick.

3. Put 1 tbsp of oil into a frying pan and add the falafels, turning when golden and crisp.

4. Chop the peppers into bitesize chunks and put on a griddle pan with the trimmed spring onions (if you don’t have a griddle pan you can roast in the oven with some olive oil – you’ll need to do this before frying the falafels).

5. Heat up the tortillas in the microwave for 45 seconds, while you marble the chilli sauce into the cottage cheese. Remove the peppers and spring onions from the pan/oven and squeeze over half of the lemon juice.

6. Either take all of the elements to the table so that people can construct their own wraps, or stack the peppers and onions, cover with some cottage cheese and then top with the falafels. Enjoy for tea or as a yummy lunch!