New Skool Wrap

Tortilla con Frittelle di Ceci, Cavolo Rosso e Peperoni
Chick Pea Fritter Tortilla with Red Cabbage & Peppers 

This colorful little dish, may be wrapped in a whole grain tortilla, bit it isn't your regular Tex-Mex fare. Nope, I came up with these little chick pea or garbanzo fritters myself, based on the traditional Sicilian potato fritters with mint and parmesan cheese that I love. We also have fritters in Sicily called "Panelle", which are made from chick pea flour, which is boiled in the same way that polenta is, poured out and allowed to cool and set and then deep fried. So of course I had to invent a combination of the 2 ideas and a healthy version at that. Was it difficult? Nah! Totally easy! And I am guessing you want to know how, right?


I started off with half a can of chick peas. I drained them and mashed them into a smooth paste- you can do this easily enough with a fork, as I did. I added half the amount in dried breadcrumbs, 1 egg, 1 spring onion finely chopped, about a tablespoonful of freshly chopped parsley, the same of mint, the same again of grated salted ricotta, some nutmeg, paprika, caraway seeds, cayenne, salt, pepper and a little finely chopped ginger. Mix everything together into a smooth paste. At first, you will think that the mixture is too soft. Let it stand for 5 minutes and see how much moisture the breadcrumbs soak up. In my case, 5 minutes later the paste was firm and wonderful to shape into little patties. Here's a little tip for you- it is easier to shape the patties if you dip your fingers into some water first.


Fry in a very little olive oil and a couple of cloves of garlic to mildly flavor the oil, for 6-7 minutes on each side until they are a lovely golden brown.

 

I served them with shredded red cabbage and bell pepper. The cabbage was marinated in that yummy sweet Thai chili sauce, lemon juice and a little sea salt. The white sauce you can see, was a mix of cream cheese, lemon juice & zest, olive oil, grated ginger, salt and pepper. I sprinkled it with some of those toasted, ground paprika flakes for a little extra kick and enjoyed the combination of all of these good, fresh flavors immensely!

These little fritters taste great either hot or cold and are a great, satisfying alternative to a meat filling. If you are that way inclined. This evening I was! Maybe after reading this, you will be too!