Place the chickpeas in a large bowl and cover with about 3 inches of cold water. Add 1 teaspoon baking soda. Let them soak overnight. The chickpeas will double in size as they absorb water—you’ll end up with about 4 to 5 cups of chickpeas.

Drain and rinse the chickpeas well.

Add the chickpeas to your food processor along with the chopped onion, garlic cloves, parsley, flour, salt, cumin, coriander, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and cardamom.

Blend all the ingredients together until you have a coarse, grainy mixture. Scrape down the sides of the food processor as needed and push the mixture down. Process until the mixture is somewhere between the texture of couscous and a paste.

Once the mixture reaches the desired texture, transfer it to a bowl and use a fork to mix. Remove any large pieces of chickpea. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1-2 hours. Fill a skillet with oil to a depth of 1 1/2 inches. Heat the oil slowly over medium heat. Meanwhile, shape the falafel mixture into round balls or small patties using wet hands or a falafel scoop. I usually use about 2 tablespoons of mixture per falafel. You can make them smaller or larger depending on your preference. The balls will stick together at first, but will separate as they fry.