How delicious are these pumpkin and chickpea balls? You have to try them to know for yourself, I love them and they are also very light. They are vegan and gluten-free, made with simple ingredients we have at home and of course in autumn when pumpkins are abundant.
You can prepare them in advance and cook them before sitting at the table. I usually roast the pumpkin in the air fryer in cubes and then use it for many preparations, like these balls. It’s the fastest way for me to make them.
They cost only 1 Weight Watchers point each and provide protein and fiber so they are perfect for a main course. Let’s make them together!
I’ll leave you some other recipes for tasty balls:
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very cheap
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 9 balls
- Cooking methods: Air frying, Oven
- Cuisine: Healthy
- Seasonality: Autumn, Winter, and Spring
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cup cooked chickpeas (alternatively boil 60g of soaked dry chickpeas)
- 2 1/2 cups pumpkin (about 1 cup cooked needed)
- 1 clove garlic
- 1 tbsp sunflower seeds
- to taste fresh rosemary, thyme, and sage (or even dried)
- to taste dried garlic, onion, and cumin (mix to your taste, omitting those you don't like)
- 2 tbsp water
- to taste salt
- Total points = 9 WW points
- Points per ball = 1 WW point
Tools
- Cutting board
- Knife
- Air fryer
- Blenders
- Ice cream scoop
- Air fryer paper
Steps
As always, the first thing to do is measure all the ingredients well so that all the steps will be easy to follow.
Place the chickpeas, sunflower seeds, herbs, dried spices, and a pinch of salt in the blender jar.
Pulse blend to break up and mix well without making it a puree. This way, small pieces will remain, giving more texture to the balls.
Cut the pumpkin into cubes and place them directly in the air fryer’s basket. Roast the pumpkin at 340°F for about 30 minutes.
Add the roasted pumpkin to the blender jar.
Pulse the blender again until you get a compact mixture but still with little pieces. If it doesn’t compact, add a little water. Taste and if needed, add more salt.
Use an ice cream scoop to form uniform balls or simply use a spoon. You’ll get 9 if you use the ice cream scoop to make large balls.
Shape the balls and flatten them slightly. Place a special paper sheet in the air fryer’s basket or, as I do, use a Teflon sheet cut to size that you can wash and reuse.
Start by cooking the balls at 340°F for 8 minutes, take out the basket and turn the balls, but this time there’s no more need for paper: turn them and place them directly in the basket. Cook them for another 7 minutes or more until they are nicely golden.
Here are our pumpkin and chickpea balls ready to go to the table! But if you let them rest a bit, they’re even tastier…
These were also liked by the Dutchman who doesn’t favor pumpkin, so I was really satisfied.
Serve the pumpkin and chickpea balls with a big plate of veggies and some good whole-grain bread, or you can slightly flatten them and make a wrap with a tortilla or flatbread adding arugula and tomatoes and some yogurt sauce. And you can also take them to work as they are delicious both hot and cold.
Let me know if you liked them in the comments below or in my Facebook Club.
Enjoy!
By Giovanna Buono
Storage
You can prepare the mixture in advance the day before, leave it in the fridge, and cook the balls afterward.
Once cooked, you can keep them in the fridge for 4 days or freeze them and then reheat them as needed without thawing.
FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions)
If I want to use dry chickpeas, what should I do?
If you want to cook them yourself, soak about 60-80g of dry chickpeas overnight and then boil them in unsalted water for about 2 hours. If they don’t soften, you can add a pinch of baking soda and cook for another half hour. Once cooled, you can also remove the peel to make them more digestible. Take the amount you need and freeze the rest.
What can I use instead of chickpeas?
I believe any other type of cooked legume can work well even though I haven’t personally tried it yet.
Can I also use the oven?
Certainly, in the oven you can prepare more balls! I haven’t tried in the oven but I’m sure if you preheat the oven to 390°F, bake for 12 minutes, then turn the balls and bake for another 12 minutes it should be fine: you can gauge from the color of the balls, which should be nicely golden.
