Blue cheese, bulgur, quinoa and herb croquettes

Woolworths is committed to sustainability via our good business journey. Seasonal (and other) products might not always be in stock.

These croquettes pair beautifully with pickled pears and bean and pecan nut salsa. They're the creation of chef Luke Dale-Roberts.

Ingredients

250 g bulgur wheat, prepared according to package instructions
1 free-range egg
30 g Parmesan, finely grated
30 g cooked red quinoa
30 g cooked white quinoa
10 g parsley, chopped
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 thumb-tip-sized balls of blue cheese
Sunflower oil, for deep-frying
Wild rocket, for serving
For the pickled pears:
½ cup white wine vinegar
1 cup hanepoot
½ cup water
80 g sugar
2 g saffron (optional)
6 pears, peeled
For the bean and pecan nut salsa, mix:
80 g cooked black-eyed beans
40 g blanched raisins
60 g pecan nuts, diced
5 T olive oil
Juice of ¼ lemon
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
For the Parmesan dressing:
2 T white wine vinegar
½ t fresh rosemary, chopped
1 free-range egg yolk
1 T Dijon mustard
40 g Parmesan
1¼ cups olive oil
Sea salt, to taste

Cooking Instructions

Add the egg and Parmesan to the soaked bulgur wheat and beat vigorously using a wooden spoon. Add both the quinoas and the parsley and continue beating. Season to taste.

Scoop ½ cup of the mixture onto a sheet of cling film. Top with another sheet of cling film and roll the dough to form a disc of approximately 10 cm in diameter.

Remove the top layer of cling film, place a blue cheese ball in the centre of the disc and gather up the sides. Squeeze it together to form a neat parcel. Repeat with the remaining quinoa mixture and blue cheese.

Deep-fry the croquettes in 180°C oil until golden, then drain on kitchen paper.

Break open a couple of the croquettes, allowing the cheesy centres to ooze out; leave the rest whole. Arrange on a plate alongside slices of pickled pear and a few leaves of wild rocket.

Drizzle with the salsa and dressing and serve immediately.

To make the pickled pears, place the vinegar, hanepoot, water, sugar and saffron, if using, in a saucepan and bring to a boil.

Add the pears, reduce the heat and poach for 10 to 15 minutes, or until they can be easily pricked with a knife. Allow to cool, then slice and remove the cores.

To make the Parmesan dressing, place the vinegar, rosemary, egg yolk, mustard and Parmesan in a jug blender and blend on a high speed.

With the blender running, slowly add the oil in a steady stream to create a creamy dressing. Season to taste with salt.