Vegan meatballs (Moroccan-inspired)

Instructions

1. Heat up 2 tbsp olive oil in a frying pan. Add chopped onion and fry it, stirring regularly, until almost translucent. Add chopped garlic and fry until garlic is soft and fragrant and onion becomes completely translucent.

2. While onion and garlic are getting ready, shred drained chickpeas finely in a food processor. Set aside.

3. Add finely diced carrot and mushrooms to the onion and garlic mixture and sauté gently until the carrot becomes cooked and mushrooms brown and become dry (all their liquid cooks out).

4. Stir in all of the spices and mix them well into the mixture. Saute for a minute or two on a low heat. Add tomato paste and sauté for another minute.

5. In a large mixing bowl, combine onion / garlic / carrot and mushroom mixture with shredded chickpeas, walnuts, zest, chopped apricots, herbs and nutritional yeast. Season with salt and black pepper. Using your hands combine all the ingredients thoroughly so that they are evenly distributed throughout the mixture (if you've used chilli, you may need to use your gloves to do that).

6. Place the mixture in the fridge for a few hours for the flavours to mingle and for the mixture to become more pliable.

7. Before you are ready to make your meat balls, heat up your oven to 200º C / 390º F and line a baking tray with a piece of baking paper.