Bring 3 cups of water to a boil in a pot. Remove from heat, add the bulgur and let soak for 30 minutes, or until very soft. Drain well of excess water.
Combine in a food processor: cooked bulgur, garbanzos, baking soda, 3 tablespoons of flour, garlic, ground red pepper, cumin, coriander, tumeric, egg and salt. Process until the mixture reaches the consistency of a paste thats smooth but not so moist that you are unable to work it into small balls. If too wet, add 2 tablespoons of flour and mix well.
Shape into 12 small round balls. Set on a baking sheet lined with paper towels and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Heat a large saute pan over medium heat with enough oil to coat the pan. Working in batches, place the falafel balls in the pan and use a grill spatula to flatten them into the shape of small patties. Cook the sliders for 2 to 3 minutes. Flip and cook for 2 more minutes, or until cooked through.
Serve on slider buns with suggested toppings.
Toppings:
Yogurt sauce (see below)
Cucumber slices
Tomato slices
Feta cheese
For the yogurt sauce:
Stir together œ cup of Greek yogurt, juice of half a lemon, 1 minced garlic clove, 2 tablespoons of freshly chopped parsley and a generous pinch of salt.
2 cups garbanzo beans, cooked and drained well
1 tsp. baking soda
5 Tbsp. flour, divided, plus additional as needed
4 to 5 large cloves garlic
¼ to ½ tsp. ground red pepper
1 tsp. freshly ground cumin seeds
2 tsp. freshly ground coriander seeds
½ tsp. ground tumeric
1 egg
½ tsp. salt
Oil for cooking
12 slider buns
This article appears in July 2012.