We love our “Taco Tuesday”, but why not get creative and change it up a little. I really enjoy Mediterranean food, the fragrant spices, and the ingredients’ freshness. So today, I made pita tacos like a pita sandwich or wrap called “My Mediterranean Turkey Falafel Tacos”. Here is the recipe I made for my family last night.
This is not the traditional falafel recipe; it is more like a turkey couscous meatball. I just decided to call it like that to keep with the Mediterranean theme. This is such a healthy alternative to the usual tacos you get, as it’s packed with more nutritious meat and vegetables.
Savoury Mediterranean Turkey Falafel Tacos Recipe
Print RecipeIngredients
- 1 pound of lean ground turkey
- 1 cup of dry couscous
- 4 whole-wheat pita bread
- 1 cup of water
- 1 medium Persian cucumber
- 2 green onion stems
- 2 large cloves of garlic
- 1 lemon
- 1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup of organic grape tomatoes
- 1 can of garbanzo beans
- 1 teaspoon of tahini sauce
- ½ cup of carrots
- 3 leaves of mint
- Spices-about less than ½ teaspoon of cumin, curry, and garlic powder
Instructions
Turkey Falafel Instructions
- First, cook the couscous by boiling one cup of water, and season with salt, pepper, lemon peel and a pinch of cumin. Once it boils, pour 1 cup of dry couscous, stir, cover, let it sit for 5 minutes and fluff it with a fork at the end.
- In a large bowl, combine the ground turkey, ½ cup of cooked couscous, 1 clove of garlic minced, chopped green onion, salt, pepper, a pinch of cumin, curry and chopped mint leaves and drizzle a little bit of olive oil.
- Form balls of about 1-inch each. Put in a baking sheet, covered with non-stick spray. Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 to 20 minutes.
Hummus Instructions
- In the meantime, let’s get to the hummus. First, rinse and peel the garbanzo beans’ soft skin, and put in the blender with the juice of 1 lime, salt, pepper, olive oil, minced garlic, and tahini sauce, and blend to perfection. Sometimes I add about 1 to 2 a couple of spoonfuls of water if too thin it out.
- Pour into a small bowl to plate it, and drizzle olive oil and some chopped black olives on top.
Couscous Salad Instructions
- Combine the cooked couscous with chopped cucumber, tomatoes, carrots, chopped parsley, and green onion for the couscous salad. Season with salt, pepper, and olive oil and lemon juice drizzle.
- Finally, warm the whole wheat pita bread for 5 minutes in the oven.
- All is ready to serve. Cut your pita bread in half, filled with couscous salad, “turkey falafel”, and topped with tangy and smooth hummus. Enjoy!
