Butternut Squash Falafel with Tahini Maple Sauce

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat.

Make the caramelized onions: slice onions lengthwise vertically so that they are in about 1 cm wide slices of onion. Heat a skillet over medium-high heat until heated. Add the onions and stir around. Add the oil and stir again. Top skillet with a lid and turn heat to lowest setting for 15 minutes, stirring around every 3-5 minutes. Remove lid and turn up heat to medium or medium high and cook onions for another 20-25 minutes or until golden brown and softened and taste sweet to taste, stirring every 3-5 minutes to make sure it doesn’t burn. Add small amount (1 teaspoon) water if needed to help keep from burning/getting dry.

Make the oat flour by blending ½ cup oats in a blender or food processor until a fine flour and place into a medium sized bowl.

Add chickpeas, garlic and pumpkin or butternut squash puree to the bowl of a food processor or blender. Pulse just a few times until you get a chunky mixture. You do not want to fully puree the mixture! Just a couple pulses should leave it chunky.

Add this mixture to the bowl with the oat flour. Add: cumin, coriander, onion powder, turmeric and salt and pepper along with the roughly chopped parsley. Add the lemon juice and stir together to combine.

Use a cookie scoop or your hands to portion into balls on the baking sheet.

Bake for about 20 minutes or until the tops are golden brown.

Make the sauce: combine all of the ingredients for the maple tahini sauce. Sauce should be thin enough to use as a drizzle, but not super watery! Add more water as necessary to thin it out.

Remove falafel from oven, let cool slightly and place in pita or flatbread, topped with caramelized onions, greens, and tahini drizzle.