Ready for a delicious Middle Eastern inspired patty that’s completely vegan and jam packed with incredible nutrients that will help your baby’s development? Then you’ll love this baby falafel recipe.
Perfectly sized for little fingers, this baby falafel can be served alone, stuffed in wraps for older kids or piled onto a salad with lashing of spicy sauce and tahini for adults.
Read on for the delicious baby falafel recipe!
Baby Falafel
I’ve always been a huge fan on Middle Eastern food thanks to the year I spent living in France with my Lebanese and Syrian housemates. They introduced me to creamy hummus, perfectly spice falafel and even how to make the perfect tagine.
Of course, it’s important for me to share the flavours of the Middle East with my children, so they too can experience the delights of their incredible food.
This baby falafel recipe is inspired by the Middle East but is adapted for tiny mouths. Although it uses some spices, I have avoided adding anything that will be overwhelmingly flavourful such as chilli flakes or paprika.
What is falafel?
Falafel is a traditional Middle Eastern food that consists of chickpeas and fresh herbs and spices that are mashed together and fried to create scrumptious balls of happiness.
Falafel can be served with pitta or flatbread, served alone or served with a range of other appetisers as part of a meze.
How to make falafel for babies
To make falafel for babies, simply follow these steps:
1. Drain the chickpeas and add to a bowl along with the spices, herbs and flour.
2. Combine all ingredients and mash with a fork until a thick paste forms.
3. Using a tablespoon, spoon chunks of the falafel paste into your hands and roll into balls. You should be able to make around 7 – 8 balls in total.
4. Heat oil in a frying pan then add the falafel balls. Gently press on them with the back of your spoon to flatten.
5. Fry for around 4 minutes on medium to low heat before carefully flipping. Fry on the opposite side for another 4 minutes.
6. Leave to cool completely before serving to baby.
Our favourite baby led weaning products
What can you eat alongside falafel?
Falafel goes great with:
- Flatbread, hot sauce (for adults!), tahini and lashings of salad
- Lettuce, tomato, cucumber and chunks of pitta
- Served alongside olives, grilled halloumi, hummus and chunky bread
More baby led weaning recipes:
Is falafel good for you?
Falafel’s main ingredient is chickpeas and this ingredient is many health benefits for your baby as a rich source of vitamins and nutrients. Chickpeas contain:
- Protein – essential for growth
- Dietary fibre – help prevent constipation
- Calcium – important for healthy teeth and bones
- Iron – supports proper neurological development
- Magnesium – helps keep the heart beating and helps prevent tooth decay
- Potassium – helps regulate fluid balance, muscle contractions and nerve signals
Isn’t there a lot of sodium in chickpeas?
Tinned chickpeas can contain larger amounts of sodium (salt) as it’s used as a preservative. You have a couple of options in order to ensure you’re not offering too much salt to your baby.
Firstly you can buy dried chickpeas (available in health stores and major supermarkets), but be aware these will need to be soaked for a long period of time to get them to the right consistency.
Secondly, you can use tinned chickpeas in moderation (eg. avoid offering falafel on a daily basis) and be sure to rinse the chickpeas thoroughly before using them to feed your baby.
How do you serve falafel to babies?
These falafel can be served as is as a patty or cut into smaller strips too. If your baby is at the more advanced stage of weaning, you could even try serving them in a flatbread to let them practise the art of sandwich eating!
Baby Falafel
Delicious and simple to create baby falafel. Enjoy this recipe with your baby, toddler or pre-schooler. A healthy and delicious lunchbox fave!
Ingredients
- 1 can chickpeas
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 2 tbsp plain flour
- 2 tsp dried parsley
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tbsp oil for frying
Instructions
1. Drain the chickpeas and add to a bowl along with the spices, herbs and flour.
2. Combine all ingredients and mash with a fork until a thick paste forms.
3. Using a tablespoon, spoon chunks of the falafel paste into your hands and roll into balls. You should be able to make around 7 - 8 balls in total.
4. Heat oil in a frying pan then add the falafel balls. Gently press on them with the back of your spoon to flatten.
5. Fry for around 4 minutes on medium to low heat before carefully flipping. Fry on the opposite side for another 4 minutes.
6. Leave to cool completely before serving to baby.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 71Total Fat: 3gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 79mgCarbohydrates: 9gFiber: 2gSugar: 1gProtein: 3g
Author: Nicola Hughes
Nicola has weaned both of her boys using the baby led weaning method. She loves nothing better than creating simple recipes that anyone can recreate, using as few ingredients as possible. All of her recipes have been tried and tested by both Dexter and Felix and have their seal of approval!
Agnes
Friday 2nd of June 2023
This is waaaaay to spicy Cooked it for my 9m old and she is crying! Cant eat it! Served it w yogurt, cucumber,flatbread and tomato but cant eat the falafel. Checked and did put in the right amount of spices. Huge dissapointment. I tried it tok and can tell why she is crying.
Nicola | Mummy to Dex
Wednesday 7th of June 2023
Hi Agnes, was this your first time introducing spices to your little one? Every baby is different of course and some will tolerate spices better than others. When first introducing spices to your baby it is a good idea to start off with little amounts. Even though cumin ranks relatively low on the hot/spicy scale, if you have concerns about your baby's tolerance to heat/spice or are introducing cumin for the first time I would reduce the amount of cumin to a 1/4 teaspoon
Sunshine
Tuesday 16th of May 2023
Just made these and they are delicious! Will be serving to my baby with sesame tahini yogurt and veggies to dip. Do these freeze well?