Eating Around the World (From Home....And Gluten Free...): August 2022

Welcome to Israel! Some of my coworkers, Handsome Husband and I have been watching "The Chosen" recently. (Side note - this show is incredible. Stop what you're doing and watch it - it is worth it!) The Chosen is about Jesus, but isn't one of those typical Christian shows. This one makes you WANT to be Jesus' friend, and is just so personal. As a group, we decided to eat from Israel in honor of this show. I've always been fascinated by Israel because of the Biblical history. I would love to go there someday. According to Google, Israel has a population of 9.31 million people and the capital is Jerusalem. Their national dish is...

Falafel!

Why did it have to be chickpeas?! I can't eat chickpeas because they make me ill. So, I set out to find a falafal recipe that didn't include chickpeas. Good luck, right?! But I did! To go with the falafel, we had Israeli salad, Latkes, and Israeli cheesecake. Here's what I did:

FALAFEL

1 C raw almonds

1/4 C hemp hearts

4 garlic cloves

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 egg

2 tbsp coconut oil

1/2 C fresh parsley leaves

Avocado oil spray

For Wraps

Wraps (We used Siete brand almond flour tortillas)

Hummus

Arugula

Red onion, thinly sliced

Pine nuts, toasted

Harissa sauce

Tahini Dressing

1/3 C tahini

Juice of 1 lemon

1 tbsp agave

1 tbsp avocado oil

Put the almonds, hemp hearts, garlic, cumin, chili powder, onion powder and salt into a food processor and process until chopped up and mealy.
Add the egg, coconut oil, and parsley and process until combined.
Chill the batter for about 30 minutes in the fridge.
Preheat the oven to 350 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Scoop dollops of the falafel batter onto the cookie sheet and make into round balls.
Bake for 20 minutes.
While the falafel is baking, make tahini sauce by combining all the ingredients in a bowl and stir until well-mixed.
Remove from oven and spray each ball with the avocado oil spray and broil for 2 minutes until golden brown.
Remove and serve in wraps with all the toppings and tahini sauce.

(Source: Falafel)

ISRAELI SALAD

2 cucumbers, diced

4 Roma tomatoes, diced

1 small red onion, diced

1 red and 1 yellow bell pepper, diced

1/4 C parsley leaves, minced

1 tbsp mint leaves, minced

1/4 C avocado oil

Juice from 2 lemons

Salt and pepper, to taste

Add the all the ingredients to a bowl, and stir until everything is coated. Serve immediately.

(Source: Israeli Salad)

LATKES
1 onion

2 lbs gold potatoes

2 eggs

2 tsp salt

1 tsp pepper

1 tsp garlic powder

Oil, for frying

Process the onion in a food processor until finely chopped.
Place the chopped onion in a colander on top of a bowl, and let drain.
shred the potatoes in a food processor, and place the shredded potatoes in the colander with the onions.
With your hands, mix the onion and the potatoes together.
Use cheesecloth or a flour-sack cloth and wring out as much liquid as you can from the potato/onion mixture.
In a large bowl, mix together the eggs, salt, pepper, and garlic powder.
Add the potato/onion mixture and use a fork to mix well.
Heat oil in a skillet over medium heat until hot, but not smoking. (Oil should cover the bottom of the pan, and be about 1/2 inch deep.)
Spoon about 2 tbsp of the mixture into the oil and flatten with the fork.
Cook for about 5 minutes, until the bottom of the latke is brown.
Flip the latke and cook for another 5 minutes, or until brown.
Set on paper towels to drain, and then eat right away.

(Source: Latkes)

ISRAELI CHEESECAKE

200 g gluten free graham crackers

100 g almonds

100 g butter, melted

500 ml whipping cream

1 C sugar

80 g instant vanilla pudding

200 ml sour cream

500 g cream cheese

Zest of a lemon

Process the graham crackers and almonds in a food processor until finely ground.
Mix in the melted butter and stir (with hands) until well combined and lumps form.
Line a springform pan with parchment paper.
Cover the bottom of the pan with 2/3 of the crumb batter, making a crust.
Using a standing mixer, whip whipping cream, sugar, and vanilla pudding until a stable cream is formed.
Add sour cream, cream cheese, and zest and continue blending until stable.
Pour mixture into the pan on the crust, and top with remaining crumb mixture.
Chill in the fridge until set, overnight.

(Source: Israeli Cheesecake)

The verdict? Israel has some tasty food! The salad was refreshing with the other elements of the meal, and fit very nicely. The mint leaves were a bit strange, but the more you ate it, the more you wanted to eat it! The falafels were very good. They were dense and packed with protein, so we could only eat a few before we were full. They were quite dry on their own, but with all the toppings and sauces, they were perfect. The latkes were potato pancakes - I didn't think there was anything special about them, but they were very tasty with the harissa sauce! Gave them an extra kick! But the cheesecake was the winner. I don't like cheesecake (texture thing) but this was so good. I think this may be my new go-to dessert. It was so very good.

Taste of Falafel (1 is terrible, 10 is amazing): 7