PISTACHIO AND ALMOND FETA KIBBEH

The filling of minced seitan with the addition of pistachios and vegan feta give this dish a great flavour. Serves 4–6 Preparation: 35 minutes, plus standing Cooking: 25 minutes 150ml vegetable oil For the shells: 200g bulgur wheat

3tbsp self-raising flour 1tbsp sumac

½tsp ground cumin For the filling:

120g seitan

Splash of vegetable oil

½ onion, finely diced

2 garlic cloves, crushed

1 small green chilli, finely diced 1tsp ground allspice

1tsp ground coriander

½tsp ground cinnamon

1tsp dried mint

100g almond feta 30g raw shelled pistachio nuts 30g flat-leaf parsley, chopped

1 Put the bulgur wheat in a bowl, add 250ml hot water, cover with clingfilm and leave to stand until the water has been absorbed.

2 Put the seitan in a food processor and pulse until it resembles fine mince, or chop it finely by hand.

3 Heat oil in a frying pan and sauté the onion, stirring frequently, until translucent. Add garlic and chilli and cook, stirring, for a couple of minutes. Add spices and mint and cook for a further few minutes, stirring. Add the minced seitan and mix together well, then season.

4 Remove from heat and leave to cool, then stir in the almond feta, pistachios and parsley. Set aside.

5 Once the bulgur has absorbed the water, add the flour, sumac,

1/2tsp salt and cumin. Work the bulgur into a pliable mixture that holds together, adding a couple of tablespoons of water to help bind it.

6 To shape the kibbeh, scoop a heaped tablespoon of the bulgur mixture on to the palm of your hand and firmly pat out to form a thin layer that covers your palm. With your free hand, take a large teaspoon of the seitan mixture and compress it in the palm of your hand until compacted, then place in the centre of the bulgur. Close your hand to make a fist so that the bulgur wraps itself around the seitan mixture and squeeze down to compress it into a round ball. If you can still see exposed seitan mixture, patch up the shell with bulgur wheat. The layer of bulgur wheat must be as thin as possible to achieve a light kibbeh. Repeat so that you end up with 8–10 small kibbeh.

7 Heat oil for frying the kibbeh in a frying pan until it reaches about 180°C. Add the kibbeh, in small batches, and fry for about 4–5 minutes, turning them so that all sides become golden. Drain the kibbeh from the pan on to kitchen paper to absorb the excess oil.

8 Serve hot, drizzled with tahini sauce, along with ezme salad, if you like.