Have you ever tried making your own falafels? Amazingly they are a taste sensation and I can imagine all sorts of ingredient options so I will be making them alot more!

The traditional way to cook them would be to fry them in oil, this version is much healthier and tastes just as good. Falafels are made from chickpeas, which are full of fibre, both soluble (draws out toxins and lowers cholesterol) and insoluble (encourages elimination). They have a low GI and support energy production in our cells making them ideal for weight loss.

Chickpeas are also wonderful for women especially from a hormonal perspective. The manganese they contain can help the symptoms of PMS but if you are postmenopausal they contain helpful phytochemicals called saponins. These act as antioxidants and can lower the risk of breast cancer, osteoporosis and minimise hot flushes.

For the falafels:

• 1 can of chickpeas, drained
• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 small onion, roughly chopped
• ½ cup parsley
• 1 tablespoon gluten free flour eg. Amaranth, buckwheat, chickpea
• 1 teaspoons sea salt
• 2 teaspoons ground cumin
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• Fresh cracked black pepper to taste
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 100g of pistachios

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.

Place all of the ingredients in a food processor and blend for a minute or two – you want the mixture to be manageable but still a little chunky.

With wet hands, roll the mixture into balls and place on a lined baking tray. Bake in the oven, turning every ten minutes, until golden brown – 25 to 30 minutes.

For the tomato salsa:

• 3 large tomatoes, diced
• ½ red onion, finely chopped
• A good handful of Italian parsley, chopped
• Juice of one lemon
• Salt and pepper
• Mix all together, season to taste.

You could try other fresh herbs in your falafel and salsa mix such as mint, coriander, basil, oregano or a mixture of herbs.