Falafel Feast

Oh Chick Pea Cafe of Bozeman, how I have missed you so! Your falafel, hummus, and basmati rice topped with kishmish were always my favorite.   The flavors were bold and bright and the presentation of the food was beautiful as well. Recently I was wondering if I would ever again experience a meal of that exotic and scrumptious Mediterranean cuisine. Well, this weekend, I did!

Adam came to visit this weekend and I wanted to try my hand at reinventing the Chick Pea Cafe meal, complete with hummus, falafel, rice, fresh veggies and the socca. Eating at Chick Pea has been one of our favorite places to eat together and I have a lot of wonderful memories from that little cafe on the corner. And while our meal at my dining room table wasn't quite the same as dining out, I can say the experiment was a success and Adam and I really enjoyed our meal sitting side by side at my dinner table.

Using the recipe for falafel and socca in this cookbook: (available at Barnes and Noble) I created a memorable and very tasty meal full of love and care and precision.

Here are the ingredients for the Socca:

• chickpea flour
• salt
• fresh ground black pepper
• olive oil
• water
• dried basil
• dried rosemary

I can not reproduce the recipe from the cookbook here (copyright laws and all that). But I know there are lots of recipes available online. The bread was very easy to make and tasted great dipped in some hummus or marinara sauce. Or as Adam discovered, a mixture of hummus and marinara!

And here is the completed product:

And here are the ingredients for the falafel:

• cumin 
• garlic
• egg
• lemon juice
• 2 cans of garbanzo beans
• rice flour
• onion
• parsley
• olive oil

And here is the falafel straight out of the oven:

I had left over falafel for dinner last night and I placed it under the broiler for about 5 to 7 minutes and  it browned up very nicely and had a wonderful crunch to it. So when I make this again, I will broil it after baking it. It adds another level of taste and texture and makes it look so.....professional ;)

And here was our delicious spread:

As you can see, I sliced fresh tomato and cucumber to dip in the hummus. I also cooked up a large pot of short grain brown rice which was a great addition to the meal as it lent a neutral flavor among all the herbs and spices in the socca and falafel.

The best part about this meal though was sharing it with Adam, the man I love with all my heart. It meant so much to cook and prepare all this by hand and scratch and have the opportunity to share it with him. Nourishing the body, mind and spirit by sharing a meal with the ones you love....nothing compares to it. It is true that our bodies and minds and spirits need food, but our bodies and minds and spirits need love and care and devotion too. And I was able to give and receive all that just by preparing and sharing this meal with Adam. It doesn't get any better than that.