Crispy Chickpea Cake Pitas with Mint Yogurt Sauce

These turned out great! Normally I'd use ground cumin but I ran out so I used cumin seeds.

I suppose I could have ground the seeds but I wanted to see how they would turn out. Next time I'll dip them in flour before frying - I think they'll be even crispier that way.

Crispy Chickpea Cake Pitas with Mint Yogurt Sauce
Makes 9 pieces (3 per sandwich)

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup plain thick yogurt
• 1 tablespoon dried dill
• 1 tablespoon dried crushed mint
• salt and pepper
• 1 onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 teaspoon cumin seeds
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/4 cup fresh chopped parsley
• 1 19oz can chickpeas, rinsed, drained and pureed
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper
• olive oil for frying
• 1 1/2 whole wheat pitas

Directions

1. Mix the yogurt with dill and mint, then season with salt and pepper. Refrigerate until ready to use.
2. In a nonstick pan over medium heat, fry onion, garlic and cumin seed in oil. Cool slightly. Mix remaining ingredients together, then add the fried onion mixture. Stir to combine. Roll the mixture into balls (I made 9 but it'll depend on the size of the balls you make) then flatten slightly with your hands.
3. Heat a few tablespoons of oil in a nonstick pan over medium heat. Place the balls in the pan and flatten a bit more if desired. Cook for about 3-5 minutes per side or until golden. Drain on paper towel then serve on a pita with lettuce, tomato and yogurt sauce.

Tips:

• I cut the pitas in half so they make a pocket. You could also roll the ingredients in the pita if you prefer. I haven't tried, but you could probably leave the mixture in a ball shape and deep fry them. They may turn out more like a falafel.