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Home Meal Type Snacks
5
/5
30 minutes

Southwestern Baked Falafels with Corn & Black Beans

Dairy Free Dairy-Free Gluten Free Gluten Free Nut Free Nut Free Vegetarian Vegetarian Meal Prep Meal Prep
Jump to Recipe
By: Denise Bustard10 Comments
Posted: 5/18/14 Updated: 8/29/20

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.

These baked falafels are perfectly crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, with no frying step! Loaded with corn, black beans, cilantro and lime for a fun Southwestern remix.

Seven Southwestern Baked Falafels on a blue plate with a lime wedge

What did the sick chickpea say to the doctor? I falafel!

Ohmygosh, that was really bad. I am going to admit right off the bat on this one...I totally have writer's block and just Googled 'falafel joke'. Booooo.

I would like to call 'baby brain' today. I haven't claimed 'baby brain' in at least....a week or so. I can't remember. Baby brain.

Baby brain is about 1000 times worse than pregnancy brain. I forget basic words, I have left my keys in the door on multiple occasions. And don't even get me started on the grocery store. Not on the list? Not coming home {not even a fraction of a chance}. On the list? It might make it. But probably not.

So I hope you forgive me for not having a witty story on how I came up with this baked falafel recipe idea. I can't really remember, it just kind of happened.

Check out my basic baked falafel recipe!

Reasons you'll ♡ these Southwestern baked falafels

  • they are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, with no frying step
  • they are a tasty vegetarian option
  • they can work for meal prep

 Rows of Southwestern Baked Falafels on a silicone baking mat before baking

Southwestern Baked Falafels with Corn and Black Beans on a blue plate

Unfortunately these falafels had to 'happen' about five times before I could get them right.

For awhile there, we were up to our eyeballs in baked falafels...dry, chalky ones, dry, crumbly ones, overly-salty ones...Ben was begging me to give up on this recipe.

The thing is...I'm incredibly stubborn. I could tell these guys had potential and was determined to see it through! And I'm so glad I did, because the final product is a falafel that had Ben consuming pretty much the entire batch. I was only able to get my hands on 3 of them, but I can tell you:  they are great!

I thought baked falafels couldn't have a crispy outside. Wrong. Do you want to know my secret? Dried chickpeas!
Southwestern Baked Falafels on a blue plate with greek yogurt being spooned on top

I am so lazy. So the thought of having to soak my chickpeas made me unhappy. But, as it turns out, soaking your chickpeas is really no big deal. Cover one cup of dried chickpeas with about 3 cups of water, cover, and place in the fridge overnight. Total effort of less than a minute. When you are ready to get cooking, drain and rinse...you should end up with almost 2 cups of chickpeas.

I'm telling you now: this extra step makes all. the. difference. The dried chickpeas are essential for the perfect falafel texture. And falafels are all about texture, right?

Since I've never worked with dried chickpeas before, I thought they seemed a lot more firm than the canned ones. As in "oh my gosh, these falafels are going to be horrible' kind of firm.

And then, when I scooped the falafels onto the cookie tray, they seemed more crumbly than their canned-chickpea counterparts. But something magical happened in that oven. The falafels became crispy {crispy!!!} on the outside. Tender on the inside. Magic I tell you!

Someone picking up a Southwestern Baked Falafel with Greek yogurt on top

These baked falafels are a tasty, healthy, protein-packed snack. The lime and black beans bring a fun southwestern sort of flavor to these guys while the corn brings a sweet burst to the mix. Cayenne brings a real slight spice. Feel free to up the cayenne if you want spicy falafels!

The best part: there is no oil in this recipe! That means no scary pot of hot oil, no splattering, and {in my case}, no risk of burning your house down!

These guys are best served straight from the oven, with a big old dollop of Greek yogurt on top.

The falafel mix comes together in 10 or so minutes, and they bake for 20 minutes, which makes this a super fast and super easy recipe to whip up.

Which is good, because with my baby brain, I probably couldn't focus on anything more complicated these days 😉

Tips & equipment for Southwestern baked falafels

  • for this recipe, you'll need a food processor, and I recommend using a 1.5 tablespoon cookie scoop to form your falafels
  • wondering about meal prep? Check out these Falafel Salad Bowls (with lots of meal prep tips)
  • looking for more chickpea meal prep recipes? Check out this Chopped Chickpea Salad, these Thai Chickpea Mason Jar Salads and this Chickpea Salad Bento Box

Did you make this? Tag me on social @sweetpeasandsaffron and be sure to leave a comment and rate the recipe!

five southwestern baked falafels with corn and black beans on blue plate with spoon putting sour cream on one

Southwestern Baked Falafels with Corn & Black Beans

5 from 1 vote
Prep Time: 10 mins
Cook Time: 20 mins
Total Time: 30 mins
Print Rate
These baked falafels are perfectly crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, with no frying step! Loaded with corn, black beans, cilantro and lime for a fun Southwestern remix.
18

Ingredients

  • 1 cup of dried chickpeas soaked at least 12 hours, drained, and rinsed
  • 4 teaspoons lime juice
  • ½ lime (zested; around 1 teaspoon)
  • 3 cloves garlic (minced)
  • 1 shallot (minced)
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • ¼ teaspoon cayenne
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ cup black beans
  • ½ cup corn
  • ¼ cup cilantro (chopped)
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 egg

Topping

  • Greek yogurt

Instructions 

  • Pre-heat oven to 400 F.
  • Combine chickpeas and lime juice in a food processor and blend until chickpeas are coarse and mealy (they shouldn't form a paste).
  • In a large bowl, mix chickpeas with remaining ingredients until completely combined.
  • Form falafel balls with 1.5 tablespoons of mixture and placed on a cookie sheet lined with a greased sheet of parchment or silicone baking mat. *they may seem crumbly; press together gently. They will firm up in the oven.*
  • Bake for 15-20 minutes until lightly browned on top.
  • Serve immediately with a dollop of Greek yogurt, or other dipping sauce.

Tips:

If you make this recipe with cooked (canned) chickpeas, they will be very soft. 

Nutrition Information

Serving: 1falafel, Calories: 57kcal, Carbohydrates: 9g, Protein: 3g, Fat: 1g, Cholesterol: 9mg, Sodium: 71mg, Potassium: 149mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 1g, Vitamin A: 55IU, Vitamin C: 1.3mg, Calcium: 22mg, Iron: 1mg
Author: Denise Bustard
Course: Appetizer
Cuisine: Mediterranean

© Sweet Peas & Saffron - Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited.

Did You Make This?Don't forget to leave a review below, and tag us on Instagram using @SweetPeasAndSaffron or #sweetpeasandsaffron
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  • Adapted from Epicurious
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Meet Denise Bustard

Denise Bustard is the creator of Sweet Peas and Saffron, a meal prep-focussed food blog. With a PhD in biochemistry, Denise takes a scientific approach to perfecting her recipes. You can find Denise's work featured on Huffington Post, MSN, Self and more.

Read more...

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Recipe Rating




  1. Cooking Day By Day says

    Posted on 2/11/19 at Posted on 2/11/19

    5 stars
    Good Instructions thank you..

    Reply
  2. Ami@naivecookcooks says

    Posted on 5/20/14 at Posted on 5/20/14

    Never thought of using this combo for falafels! Genius!

    Reply
    • Denise says

      Posted on 5/20/14 at Posted on 5/20/14

      Thanks, Ami! I was wondering if anyone would think I'm crazy...Mexican meets Middle Eastern 😉

      Reply
  3. Gayle @ Pumpkin 'N Spice says

    Posted on 5/19/14 at Posted on 5/19/14

    Your joke made me laugh, so it was a good one! These falafels look delicious! I've never tried making them before, but yours turned out beautifully!

    Reply
  4. Denise says

    Posted on 5/19/14 at Posted on 5/19/14

    You should give it a go! No oil or frying = super easy falafels!

    Reply
  5. Denise says

    Posted on 5/19/14 at Posted on 5/19/14

    Thanks, Mary Frances! I hate messing around with oil!

    Reply
  6. Annie @Maebells says

    Posted on 5/19/14 at Posted on 5/19/14

    I am exactly the same! If I don't get something just right I take it as a personal challenge not to stop until it is perfect! It looks like your persistence paid off, these look lovely!

    Reply
    • Denise says

      Posted on 5/19/14 at Posted on 5/19/14

      Thank-you Annie! Sometimes stubbornness can be a bad thing. Luckily not this time 🙂

      Reply

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Hi, I'm Denise

Meal prep took me from feeling constantly stressed out about meals to cool, collected and in control. I want to share this amazing and transformational habit with you, so you can feel in control, too! Read more ...

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