For the sauce, peel and chop the garlic cloves and onion into bite size pieces. Wash and chop the tomatoes and set aside.
In a large pan, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil and saute the garlic and onions until soft, about 3 minutes on medium-high.
Then add in the tomatoes, bay leaves, salt, paprika, garam masala, black pepper and sugar and cook on medium heat for 15 minutes, until the tomatoes have broken down.
In the meantime, cook the rice according to the package instructions. Wash and cut the zucchini into round slices and season with 1 tablespoon of olive oil and salt and pepper. Bake at 200°C or 400°F for 10-12 minutes until soft.
Once the tomatoes have finished cooking, tranfer them to a blender***, add the cashews and blend until smooth.
Heat the falafel according to package instructions.
Transfer the sauce back into the pan, add the falafel and sprinkle with chopped parsley. Serve rice and zucchini on the side. Serve hot.
Notes
*You can use raw or roasted cashews.
**Swapping the parsely for cilantro is also delicious.
***Make sure you are using a high power blender that can break down nuts entirely.
You can make the sauce a few days ahead and store in the refrigerator and simply reheat when needed. I suggest preparing the rest fresh.
