A few weeks back I had the pleasure sampling the results of chef Jose Pizarro and Codorníu cava teaming up to create a series of “Great British Tapas”. You can read about that experience in my write up for Blue Tomato. I really enjoyed tasting all of the tapas and thought the idea behind the project was novel and well executed. So, I decided to share all the recipes here on my own blog.
Here’s the second of five recipes to be published this week. Check back tomorrow for another recipe.
Shepherd’s Pie Croquetas
Makes 10
For the filling:
1 onion finely chopped
2 tbsp olive oil
250g lean minced lamb
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp ground cinnamon
½ tsp ground allspice
½ tsp sweet pimentón
Freshly grated nutmeg
3 tbsp flat leaf parsley finely chopped
For the potato:
1 kilo floury maris piper potatoes
100g fresh white bread crumbs
1 egg
olive oil for frying
For the filling, fry the onion in the olive oil for 10 minutes until golden and soft. Add the minced lamb and fry for 3 minutes, breaking up any lumps as it browns. grind the cumin seeds and the coriander seeds in a spice grinder to a fine powder. Add to the minced lamb along with the cinnamon, allspice and pimentón. Season with sea salt and cracked black pepper, add 200ml water and continue to cook stirring occasionally until the liquid has evaporated and the lamb is tender. Stir in the parsley and a good grate of nutmeg, check for seasoning and set aside to cool.
Cut the potatoes into chunks and boil in a large pan of water for 20 minutes until tender, drain well and leave to dry in the colander for a few minutes until the steam dies down, return to the pan and mash until smooth. Stir in the beaten egg, season with salt and pepper and set aside to cool.
Lightly oil your hands and shape the potato into balls approx 60g, flatten each into a disc approximately 10cm diameter. Put a tablespoon of the meat filling into the middle of the discs and wrap the potato round it to form a ball. Seal any gaps then flatten gently into a 7cm patty.
Heat 1 cm of olive oil in a frying pan over a medium heat 170˚c, coat half the fritters in the breadcrumbs, add them to the pan and cook gently for 5 minutes on each side until golden and crisp. Lift out of the pan and place on a plate lined with kitchen paper. Repeat with the remaining fritters. Serve cut in half with some pea shoots.
