CHICKPEA ARANCINI WITH SUNDRIED TOMATOES, BASIL & MOZZARELLA
I'm not sure I can really call these arancini as they don't contain any rice, but the concept is somewhat the same. Delicious fried balls of chickpeas, sundried tomatoes and basil with a melty mozzarella middle. The perfect snack for aperitivo time!
Ingredients
- 400 g can chickpeas drained & liquid reserved
- 4 tbsp plain flour
- 40 g parmesan (or any other hard cheese) grated
- small handful basil leaves only
- 35 g sundried tomatoes oil drained
- 8 mozzarella pearls halved
- salt & freshly ground black pepper
BREADCRUMB COATING
- 6 tbsp breadcrumbs
- 4 tbsp plain flour
- vegetable oil for frying
Instructions
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Combine the chickpeas, plain flour, parmesan, basil, sundried tomatoes and a really good pinch of salt and black pepper in a food processor. Blitz until you have a mostly smooth dough, that you can mould into a ball with your hands. Taste and adjust the seasoning, if needed.
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Place a tablespoon of the dough into the palm of floured hands and flatten it into disk. Squash 1/2 a mozzarella pearl into the middle of the disk and form the sides up around it. Roll between the palms of your hands to form it into a nice round ball, then set on a floured tray and repeat with the rest of the mixture.
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Place the breadcrumbs on one plate, the liquid reserved from the chickpeas on another, and the flour on the last. Season the flour with salt and black pepper and stir to combine. Roll each chickpea arancini first into the flour, then into the chickpea liquid, then finally into the breadcrumbs, making sure they are coated evenly all over.
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Heat 5cm of oil in a frying pan over a medium heat. Once hot, fry the chickpea arancini in batches for 3-4 minutes, until golden and crispy. It's important to get your oil the right temperature here, so that the balls don't brown too quickly, leaving the centres uncooked. Practice with the first one or two, checking that once cooked, the cheese has melted in the centre. Remove from the pan and drain on kitchen towel to remove any excess grease.
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Serve the chickpea arancini topped with an extra grating of parmesan and a good crack of black pepper and enjoy whilst still warm.
Making these for aperitivo time? You’ve got to pair them with my Tomatini!
Takeaways in Grimsby says
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