These teff falafels are tasty, versatile and one of my favourite things to have on hand for a flavour-and-nutrient-packed lunch.  They’re also a great plant-based way to add protein to a meal. Particularly as Teff (a pseudo grain similar to quinoa) is one of the highest content grains on the market at the moment!

“What is Teff?” I hear you say…

Teff ‘grain’ is the seed of a plant found in Africa, mainly Ethiopia. If you’ve ever eaten Ethiopian food, teff flour is what is used to make injera; the flat, pancake-like, fermented bread that is a staple in Ethiopian cuisine. You cook it and use it as you might any other grain/pseudo grain like quinoa, rice, buckwheat, amaranth etc; so you can cook the whole grain via the absorption method, or it can be rolled it into flakes for use in things like porridge. The flour is great in baking/pancakes etc.. Like quinoa, teff also comes in lighter and darker colours with the only real difference being slightly deeper flavour and slightly higher mineral count in the darker colours.

Nutritionally, Teff is a seriously high performer:

• Protein – 10g protein per cup of cooked teff grain/seed
• Calcium – a cup of cooked teff offering 123mg (1.5 cups broccoli only provides 93mg)
• Vitamin C – an excellent source of vitamin C, a vitamin not normally found in grains/seeds
• It’s completely Gluten-Free
• Teff is also a great source of resistant starch
• It’s also a good source of Zinc, phosphorous, manganese, magnesium, iron and copper.

Use what you have on hand at home and improvise as you need with these ingredients and flavours, make these falafels your own! For the Teff, I use Teff Tribe products but there are other brands out there as well!

Recipe Type: GF, DF, RSF, V, P

Makes about 10 falafels
Time 30mins

Ingredients:

• 1 C cooked Teff grain/seed (could also use cooked quinoa)
• 1/2 C cooked chickpeas
• 1/2 C roasted zucchini
• 1 cloves garlic
• 2 t ground cumin
• 1 t ground coriander
• 1 T EVOO
• salt and pepper to taste

Method:

1. Place all ingredients in a food processor and process until combined (a few chunks are ok).
2. Roll into golf-ball sized balls.
3. Place on a baking tray lined with baking paper and bake in a 180 degC oven for 20-25mins, until golden.
4. Serve hot or cold in any way you like, some ways I like them are:Like a burger patty in a lettuce (or regular) bun with tomato, cucumber, onion and some of my beetroot and horseradish dip or hummus.
   • With any salad of your choice.
   • With some hummus or cottage cheese, tomato and cucumber on a rice cracker/ryvita/seed cracker.
   • Crumbled over roasted veggies or through a salad.
   • In a wrap with spinach, tomato, onion, hummus and other delicious vegetables.
5. Store in an air tight container in the fridge for up to 5 days.