Falafel with Tahini sauce

I have to admit... I love authentic food from all over the world, and middle east is no exception.Therefore i kind of took a risk when I made my American host family (where the children usually looove the plain tasting very, well, American food if you will) this meal which is very popular in Israel especially. Falafel is basically just chickpeas mixed with onion, garlic, parsley and other spices, so it's super simple to make, and is super delicious. Luckily when I served it, first for my host sister, she just looked at me with these huge eyes and said: "I love this"! So I guess it was a success!

For the falafel:
1 cups roughly chopped white onion

6 garlic cloves
2 cans chickpeas, drained
1 cup lightly packed parsley leaves
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoons baking powder
½ cup all-purpose flour
Oil, for sauteing 
Pita bread, for serving
Tomatoes and cucumber

For Tahini Sauce:
1¼ cups greek yogurt 
¼ cup tahini (sesame paste)
2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Directions:

1. Add the onion and garlic cloves to the bowl of a food processor and pulse just until they are finely minced. Remove the mixture and set it aside.
2. Add the chickpeas, parsley, salt, chili powder, and cumin to the bowl of the food processor and pulse until they are roughly blended but not pureed.
3. Return the onion mixture to the food processor, along with the baking powder and just enough flour so that when you pulse the processor, the mixture begins to form a small ball and is not sticky. (Note: Start by adding ¼ cup of flour, and then the remaining ¼ cup. You can add more if the mixture is still too wet.)
4. Transfer the falafel mixture to a bowl, cover it with plastic wrap and refrigerate it for 1 hour.
5. While the falafel mixture is chilling, prepare the tahini sauce by whisking together the yogurt, tahini and lemon juice. Season it with salt and pepper, cover it and place it in the fridge.
6. Once the falafel mixture has chilled, use a small ice cream scoop or spoons to form the mixture into balls.
7. Set a large sauté pan over medium heat and add oil to coat the pan. Let the pan pre-heat for 3 minutes then add the falafel one by one, browning them on the first side for 3 minutes, then flipping them once and browning the second side until the mixture is cooked throughout.
8. Place three or four falafel inside a halved, warmed pita and drizzle with the prepared tahini sauce, tomatoes, and cucumber.