Falafel Salad
Falafel Salad for lunch!
I don’t know about you but I need variety in my meals 99% of the time. I’m married to a person who can eat the same things all the time; I can’t do it. I can’t meal prep the same lunch for five days because by day three I wouldn’t be getting the fork past my mouth. BUT, there a few things I will on repeat all the time and falafel is one of them. Maybe it’s because there are so many things going on I won’t get bored. I’ve written about my Falafel Waffle so you can learn how my love affair with falafel started.
With the remodel happening I was not going to create more work for myself. I had to seek out shortcuts that still tasted great, looked pretty, and tasted awesome. I didn’t “make” anything in this bowl, I just put it all together. I love cooking and creating but sometimes leaning on products to get you through the times when you don’t have time or it’s too stressful makes your life so much easier.
In this beautiful bowl: (P.S. everything always tastes better in a metal bowl!)
4 C Bagged greens- I like to use butter lettuce and arugula, romaine would work great as well.
4 Trader Joes Frozen Falafel-cooked according to package directions
3 Trader Joe’s Dolmas stuffed with rice- cut in half
Dill pickles (I adore pickles so I chopped up three)
1 TBSP (ish) Mama Lil’s Pickled Goathorn Peppers
1 TBSP (ish) Pepperoncini
2 TBSP of your favorite hummus
2-4 TBSP of Tzatziki (I use Trader Joe’s, it’s really good for store-bought and they have a DF version if you’re not feeling the yogurt)
A handful of small tomatoes, sliced
1 TBSP sliced red onion or be wild and do pickled onions or both!
Extra Virgin Olive Oil, to toss the green in (maybe 1-2 TBSP)
Red Wine Vinegar, to toss the greens in (2 TBSP)
Fresh Herbs- I like dill & parsley; just tear all the fronds/leaves and add whole to the greens
1-2 TBSP crumbled feta cheese
Salt & Pepper to taste
Method:
Cook your falafel and build the rest of your salad while it’s working
Add greens & herbs to a large bowl & sprinkle with salt & pepper.
Add olive oil & vinegar, toss to combine
Add your “toppings”
I slice everything into bite-sized pieces so I can pack as much on one bite as possible
Arrange how you want but you’ll have to mix that hummus and tzatziki around to get the greens, falafel, and dolmas coated.