Make It Tonight With Living Lettuce

A head of lettuce has potential far beyond a green salad—fresh greens are great for wrapping around all kinds of things, from grilled chicken or halloumi to lamb or beef kofta or falafel. A crisp leaf of lettuce is light and fresh-tasting, and won’t fill you up as much as soft flatbread.

If you can make a batch of hummus, you can make falafel from scratch—start with a can of chickpeas, add onion, garlic and spices, and blitz in a food processor until it has a thick texture you can easily shape into small balls or patties. Fry them in canola oil—or brush them with oil and bake in a 400˚F oven—until crisp and golden.

Crispy Falafel Lettuce Wraps

Ingredients:
1 19 oz (540 mL) can chickpeas, drained
2 green onions, chopped
3 garlic cloves, peeled
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp salt
pinch dried chili flakes
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 Tbsp lemon juice
canola or other mild vegetable oil, for frying
1 head Inspired Greens butter lettuce
Sriracha, for serving (optional)

Directions:
Put the chickpeas, onion, 2 garlic cloves, cilantro, cumin, salt and chili flakes in the bowl of a food processor and pulse until combined but still chunky, scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice. Add the flour and baking powder and pulse until you have a soft mixture that you can roll into balls. Roll into meatball-sized balls, and flatten each slightly. Stir together the yogurt, lemon juice and a big pinch of salt. Finely crush or grate and stir in the last garlic clove.

In a shallow pot or skillet, heat about 1/2-inch of oil until it’s hot but not smoking. Cook the falafel for a few minutes per side, without crowding the pan, until they’re golden and crisp. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate. Serve immediately, wrapped in lettuce leaves, with garlic sauce and Sriracha.

- Julie Van Rosendaal

Three Make It Tonight recipes for Living Lettuce

	Lettuce Soup
	Crispy Falafel Lettuce Wraps
	Pasta with Lettuce & Peas