Start by soaking the dried chickpeas in fresh water overnight. The next day drain and rinse the chickpeas. Place them into a saucepan with 3x the amount of water and bring to a boil for 10 minutes, then simmer for 85 minutes until the chickpeas are softened.
In the meantime, heat the olive oil in a non-stick pan and fry the red onion until softened for 3-4 minutes. Sprinkle in the salt, then add the minced garlic and cook for one more minute, then remove from the heat.
Place the pre-cooked beetroot, onion, garlic, cooked and drained chickpeas and fresh coriander into a food processor and pulse for 10-15 times until the mix is roughly broken down and sticky. Stir in the ground cumin, ground coriander, pepper and sesame seeds, then preheat your oven to 200°C.
Carefully scoop out the falafel mix and roll into bite-size balls - it’s best to wear gloves for this, if you don’t fancy staining your hands! Gently place them onto a lined baking tray and give them a little squeeze from the top to shape them into mini patties. For an extra crunch, you can roll them in more sesame seeds.
Transfer the tray to the preheated oven and bake at 200°C for 20-22 minutes or until golden and crunchy.
Notes
If using tinned chickpeas instead of dried ones, add chickpea flour to the falafel batter to balance the moisture and get a sticky, shapeable mixture.