Baked Falafel Bowls

You’ll crave these plant-based Baked Falafel Bowls! Made with quinoa, roasted vegetables, greens and of course, baked falafel this vegan and gluten-free recipe makes a complete meal in one.

If you’ve been a blog reader for awhile, you know I’ve dabbled in many different ways of eating. For the longest time I was convinced that I needed animal proteins with every meal. While I felt good physically, I had a feeling that the choices I was making weren’t the best for the world around me. I’ve since changed my tune when it comes to animal products. While I’m certainly not vegan and make no judgement on people who choose to eat meat, I have definitely benefited from incorporating more plant-based options into my diet.

I know vegan meals (even vegetarian meals!) can be intimidating to meat lovers but this recipe is here to prove that vegan food isn’t boring. It’s packed with flavor and nutrients and will leave you feeling satisfied. 

What is falafel?

If you’ve never tried falafel before, you’re in for a treat! It is a traditional Middle Eastern dish that is made from ground chickpeas or fava beans. They’re basically rolled bean balls that are packed with herbs and spices and super flavorful! Traditionally, they are deep-fried but I’m making an upgraded version that is baked (and still just as delicious). 

Ingredients Needed for This Recipe:

There are three main components to these falafel bowls: the falafel, the dressing and the rest of the bowl ingredients. Don’t let this ingredient list scare you – there are a lot of repeat ingredients!

For the Falafel:

• Chickpeas
• Fresh parsley
• Garlic cloves
• Fresh lemon juice
• Sea salt
• Cumin
• Almond meal or flour of your choice

For the Tahini Dressing:

• Tahini
• Fresh lemon juice
• Garlic clove
• Water
• Optional: za’atar

For the Bowls:

• Quinoa
• Sweet potato
• Cauliflower
• Olive oil
• Sea salt

Easy Swaps for These Baked Falafel Bowls

• Feel free to swap out any grain for quinoa! If you aren’t gluten-free we love making these with couscous
• No almond meal? Swap out for flour or bread crumbs in the baked falafel
• Prefer different types of veggies? Replace the sweet potato and cauliflower for veggies of your choice – just adjust roasting time accordingly
• These baked falafel bowls make a great meal prep meal – just prep all of the ingredients in advance and mix right before eating

Curious how to make baked falafel? Check out this video tutorial

Baked Falafel Bowls

You’ll crave these plant-based Baked Falafel Bowls! Made with quinoa, roasted vegetables, greens and of course, baked falafel this vegan and gluten-free recipe makes a complete meal in one.

• Author: Davida Lederle
• Prep Time: 20 mins
• Cook Time: 40 mins
• Total Time: 1 hour
• Yield: 4 1x
• Cuisine: Middle Eastern
• Diet: Vegan

Scale 1x2x3x

Ingredients

For the Falafel:

• 2 cups of uncooked chickpeas*
• 1 cup chopped parsley
• 3 large cloves garlic
• 1 large lemon, juiced
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 1/4 tsp cumin
• 1/3 cup almond meal (or sub any other flour)

For the Bowls:

• 1 cup dry quinoa, cooked according to instructions
• 1 large sweet potato, cubed
• 1 head of cauliflower, cut into florets
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• sea salt

For the Tahini Dressing:

• 4 tbsp tahini
• 1 lemon, juiced
• 2–4 tbsp water
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• optional: 1 tbsp za’atar

*If using canned, this comes out to about 1 19oz can or 1 and a 1/4 14oz cans.

Instructions

For the Falafels:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. In a food processor add all ingredients except almond meal.
3. Pulse until it comes together, scraping down sides as needed.
4. Stir in almond meal. Mixture should hold it’s shape, but if not add more almond meal as needed.
5. Grab around 2 tbsp of mixture and roll into a ball.
6. Bake for 10 minutes, flip, and then bake for another 10 mins.

For the Bowls:

1. Add sweet potato and cauliflower to a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil.
2. Sprinkle with sea salt and bake for 30-40 mins.
3. Add cooked quinoa, sweet potato and cauliflower bowls and top with falafel (I add around 3 falafel to each bowl).

For the Dressing:

1. Combine all dressing ingredients, adding water until desired consistency is reached.
2. Drizzle bowls with sauce, sprinkle with za’atar if using and serve.

Like these baked falafel bowls? Here are a few other bowl recipes you might enjoy: