Paleo Carrot & Sesame Falafel

Traditionally falafel are made with chickpeas which are a no go whilst on a low-carb, paleo diet. These Baked Carrot and Sesame Falafel are Jo’s legume and grain free version… and they’re delicious.

A great addition to your weekday lunchbox. They’re super simple to make, can be enjoyed warm or cold, so you can keep a batch in the fridge to enjoy during the week.

The falafel have so much flavour thanks to the wonderful spices of coriander, cumin and fresh lemon and are so moist from the gooey tahini, olive oil and coconut flour. Perfect snacking food smothered in guacamole or tzatziki or enjoy with a nice salad.

Step-by-step

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F (200 C, fan assisted). Place the garlic on a baking tray and drizzle with 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Bake for 12 minutes until soft. When cooked remove from the oven, allow to cool and remove the skin.

   

2. Meanwhile, peel and remove the tops from the carrots. Chop into 2cm chunks. Place in a steamer over a pan of boiling water and steam for 18 minutes until soft. Option to simmer on a low heat in a pan of boiling water if you don’t have a steamer for about 12 - 15 minutes. Once cooked, remove the carrots from the steamer/ drain from the pan of water and allow to cool slightly.
   Place the carrots, peeled garlic, cumin, ground coriander, 3 tablespoons of olive oil, lemon juice, coconut flour, tahini, 1/2 of the finely chopped coriander, salt and pepper in a food processor like a Magimix or Vitamix and blitz.

   

3. You might need to scrape the sides with a spatula and blitz again until almost smooth. Fold in the remaining chopped coriander. Using your hands, roll into falafel shaped balls, about 2 cm in diameter. Coat in sesame seeds and place on a baking tray lined with grease proof paper.

   

4. Brush with a little olive oil and bake in the oven for 10 minutes. Turn and cook for a further 10 minutes until golden.

   Enjoy!

   

Recipe

Paleo Carrot & Sesame Falafel

★★★★☆4.3 (16 ratings)

Grain-free and legume-free vegan falafel made with healthy paleo ingredients. A great addition to your ...

Hands on

30m

Overall

50m

Servings

4

11.6 g

Net carbs

5.4 g

Protein

22.5 g

Fat

292

kcal

1 serving2 servings3 servings4 servings5 servings6 servings7 servings8 servings9 servings10 servings11 servings12 servings16 servings

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Ingredients makes 4 servings, 12 falafel

• 3 cloves garlic
• 5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil (75 ml)
• 450 g carrot (15.9 oz)
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ground coriander
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• ¹/₃ cup + 1 tbsp coconut flour (50 g/ 1.8 oz)
• 1 ¹/₂ tbsp tahini paste (24 g/ 0.9 oz)
• small bunch fresh cilantro, stalks removed (20 g/ 0.7 oz)
• sea salt and coarse black pepper to taste
• 2 tbsp sesame seeds (18 g/ 0.6 oz)

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F (200 C, fan assisted). Place the garlic on a baking tray and drizzle with 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Bake for 12 minutes until soft. When cooked remove from the oven, allow to cool and remove the skin.

2. Meanwhile, peel and remove the tops from the carrots. Chop into 2cm chunks. Place in a steamer over a pan of boiling water and steam for 18 minutes until soft. Option to simmer on a low heat in a pan of boiling water if you don’t have a steamer for about 12 - 15 minutes. Once cooked, remove the carrots from the steamer/ drain from the pan of water and allow to cool slightly.
   Place the carrots, peeled garlic, cumin, ground coriander, 3 tablespoons of olive oil, lemon juice, coconut flour, tahini, 1/2 of the finely chopped coriander, salt and pepper in a food processor like a Magimix or Vitamix and blitz.

3. You might need to scrape the sides with a spatula and blitz again until almost smooth. Fold in the remaining chopped coriander. Using your hands, roll into falafel shaped balls, about 2 cm in diameter. Coat in sesame seeds and place on a baking tray lined with grease proof paper.

4. Brush with a little olive oil and bake in the oven for 10 minutes. Turn and cook for a further 10 minutes until golden.

   Enjoy!

Nutrition per serving, 3 falafel

Carbs 17%Protein 8%Fat 75% of calories

Net carbs

11.6 g

Total carbs

18.5 g

Fiber

6.9 g

Sugars

6.5 g

Protein

5.4 g

Fat

22.5 g

Saturated fat

4.6 g

Calories

292 kcal

Sodium

130 mg · 5.67% RDA

Magnesium

49 mg · 12.2% RDA

Potassium

513 mg · 25.7% EMR

Nutrition by ingredient

Per 3 falafel	Net carbs	Protein	Fat	kcal
Garlic, fresh	0.7 g	0.1 g	0 g	3
Olive oil, extra virgin	0 g	0 g	1.1 g	10
Olive oil, extra virgin	0 g	0 g	10.1 g	90
Olive oil, extra virgin	0 g	0 g	3.4 g	30
Carrot, fresh	7.6 g	1 g	0.3 g	46
Cumin, ground	0.2 g	0.1 g	0.1 g	2
Coriander seed, ground	0.1 g	0.1 g	0.1 g	1
Lemon juice, fresh	0.4 g	0 g	0 g	1
Coconut flour, organic	1.3 g	2.2 g	1.9 g	46
Sesame tahini (unsweetened)	0.7 g	1 g	3.2 g	36
Coriander (cilantro), fresh	0 g	0.1 g	0 g	1
Salt, pink Himalayan rock salt	0 g	0 g	0 g	0
Pepper, black, spices	0 g	0 g	0 g	0
Sesame seeds	0.5 g	0.8 g	2.2 g	26
Total	11.6 g	5.4 g	22.5 g	292

Serving size 3 falafel

• Gluten free
• Dairy free
• Egg free
• Nut free
• Nightshade free
• Pork free
• Avocado free
• Fish free
• Shellfish free
• Pescatarian
• Vegetarian
• Vegan