Falafel are tasty chickpea balls and they are lovely to munch on as a tapas snack and perfectly delicious served as a starter with pita bread and a chilled yogurt and cucumber sauce.

In our household we love little bite-sized finger foods and falafel is always on the table, along with a bowl of humus, chilled yoghurt and cucumber sauce (tzatziki), a couple of dips and a bowl of salad.

Casual eating is a delightful and stress-free way of entertaining and the beauty of falafel is that you can prepare them in advance and they are equally pleasant served warm or at room temperature.

They are also a real treat to take along on a picnic.

And in these days of 'ouch' food prices it is also a really economical dish.

To serve falafel balls you need:

1 can of chickpeas, well drained

½ teaspoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon ground coriander

30ml flour (plus an extra tablespoon to flour your hands)

1 large onion, finely chopped

2 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely chopped

½ cup of fresh parsley, finely chopped

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Oil for deep frying

Spoon the chickpeas into a saucepan, cover with water and boil for about 10 minutes until just soft

Drain and set aside to cool

In a mixing bowl combine the chickpeas and all the other ingredients except for the oil

Use a fork to mash the chick peas and the rest of the ingredients to a coarse paste (you can also do it in a food processor for a smoother paste)

Dust your hands with the extra flour and roll the mixture into small balls

Heat the oil then deep fry the balls a few at a time until lightly browned

Lift the balls out and place them on kitchen paper to absorb excess oil

Serve with cold Greek yoghurt and pita bread halves.

Open the pita bread like an envelope and insert two of the balls in each half and encourage your guests to add yoghurt and chopped cucumber (or even ready made Tzatziki)

Some people enjoy hot or grain mustard with falafel and even a sweet chilli sauce goes well with these tasty little treats

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