With the onset of Lent, many Catholics continue the tradition of meatless fridays. Fish is the usual standby on these days. But there are many other good sources of protein. Apart from dairy, there are beans, peas and lentils, as well as whole grains, nuts and seeds.

While mung beans may remain the go-to legume in many Pinoy households (and yes, ginisang munggo is one of my comfort foods!), there is a wide variety of other beans worth trying. Take for example the chickpea, or garbanzo bean. As a child, I first got to know these little beige, wrinkly, vaguely rounded beans in callos, that Castillan dish of tripe and tomatoes. Later I rediscovered them in hummus, a tangy dip of garbanzos ground to a fine cream and blended with lemon, sesame paste, and lots of garlic. From there it was just a matter of time before I found falafel, another chickpea concoction originating in the middle east. These fried garbanzo fritters are delicious stuffed into pita bread, along with tomatoes, onions, lettuce and maybe roasted sweet peppers, cucumber slices and perhaps an olive or two.

My previous attempts at home made falafel had only middling success. The tricky part is getting the patty mixture just the right consistency that they would hold together when put into the frying fat. Then I discovered this recipe from Mark Bittman’s now defunct column in the New York Times: instant success and delicious results!

You start by soaking 1 3/4 cup dried chickpeas in water for 24 hours. They will swell to three times their original volume.

Drain the beans, rinse well and transfer to a food processor. Add the garlic, a small onion, a cup of chopped parsley and/or cilantro leaves, a teaspoon or so of ground coriander, cumin, salt, cayenne pepper, black pepper, baking soda, and a tablespoon of lemon juice. Process until everything comes together, short of becoming a puree. Adjust the seasoning to your taste.

Form small patties in the palm of your hands, about 2 tablespoons per patty. Smaller patties cook more evenly and thoroughly than large ones. Fry them in hot oil about 2 minutes on each side until nicely browned.

This recipe yielded 32 patties. You can freeze leftovers.

Serve with pita pocket bread. Name your accompaniments! Here I used avocados, kalamata olives, onion slices, lettuce and feta cheese.

Patricia is a freelance writer based in California who enjoys travel, books, and vegetable gardens. You may email her at patricia.e.galan@gmail.com.