Have you ever had a Giraffe Burger? Don't worry, I'm not talking about those lovely long legged animals... I'm talking about the small ethical chain that make the most amazing food...and specialise in tasty burgers! Mr P, being a vegetarian, is quite partial to their Falafel Burger... however, we have to go on quite a trek to get one! There aren't any chains in Cornwall as yet, so everytime we cross the boarder we always make sure that we get our Giraffe fix! The food is always amazing, great quality, great value for money and the staff are always so welcoming.
I was so excited when I found out that they were releasing their own cookbook with some of the recipes from their restaurants! So this weekend, I thought I would treat Mr P to his favourite Giraffe Falafel Burger a la Pengelly Belly. And here is the story...
Easy recipe. I'm no stranger to making falafels, but each always has a different recipe or technique. Giraffe Falafels are made with chickpeas, onion, leeks, garlic and some nice herbs and spices which are placed into a blender and blitzed... Once blitzed the mixture is set aside for a while. I put into the fridge to set. They are then shaped into mini burgers and shallow fried. Now, I normally bake mine in the oven, but I thought I would follow their recipe... unfortunately they didn't hold and turned smushy. Mmm, I don't know why. I think next time I make them, I will not blitz them as much and keep some texture to them and bake them in the oven. Anyway, they were still edible and Mr P said that if he didn't like them he would have sent them back into the kitchen! Getting back to the burger... Giraffe Burgers are not just about the burger, they are also about the stack of goodies that go with them! The Falafel Burgers are sandwiched together with love between a lovely bap and halloumi cheese, roasted red peppers, hummus, tzatziki and rocket, in a particular order! Total heaven. We went with all the trimmings and Mr P requested extra cheddar! Oh the cheek! I also served up some home fried chips, with skins on, and some BBQ sauce. No harrisa for us and Mr P finds it too hot for his delicate mouth. All you have to do is show him a spice and he breaks out into a sweat!
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| Here's the blitzed falafel ingredients |
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| The final Falafel Burger! |
So, not a great success the first time round on the Falafel front, but I will give them another go with a few little tweeks to the recipe... I still love Giraffe though! Edamame beans next on the list!
