Favokeftedes (φαβoκεφτέδες)

Over the last few days, Mr K and I have been doing a little holiday planning, getting inspired for our visit to Greece this summer. While Mr K is planning our itinerary around sensible things like ferry connections and architectural points of interest, I have been guided by regional cooking traditions and specialty produce of Greece.

So, having spent a few days reading about the famed yellow split peas of Santorini, called 'fava' (and not to be confused with broadbeans), I just had to get into the kitchen and make some Santorini inspired dishes. In this case a big bowl of traditional warming fava - a split pea puree and some favokeftedes, which are best described as a split pea croquette. I made this dish with Australian grown yellow split peas, which were excellent quality, but I can't wait to try this dish again in a few months time, with the fava grown on the spectacular Greek island of Santorini.

Favokeftedes (φάβoκεφτέδες)

Ingredients

250g yellow split peas
1 onion, peeled and grated
bunch of parsley, finely chopped
Bunch of mint, finely chopped
1 teaspoon of rigani
Zest of 1 lemon
3/4 cup of breadcrumbs
2 eggs, beaten
Pinch each of salt and freshly ground black pepper
All-purpose semolina flour, for coating the croquettes
Olive oil, for frying

Method

1. Rinse the peas in a sieve under running water, then place in a large saucepan. Add water and bring to a boil. Once boiled, add the onion and simmer over low heat for 50 minutes, until thick. Remove from heat and set aside to cool overnight in the fridge.

2. Combine all of the remaining ingredients, except for the flour and mix together to form a thick consistency. Knead the mixture and shape into golfball-sized balls. Place in the fridge to chill for around 1 hour. Coat each ball in flour and fry in a pan with a little olive oil, until golden.

These are great served alongside some horta and taramosalta. You can find my mother in law's recipe for taramosalta here.