Doights De Fatma / Fatma's Fingers - Tunisian Spring Rolls

Total Time: 1 hr 20 mins Preparation Time: 1 hr Cook Time: 20 mins

Ingredients

• 500 g shelled prawns, uncooked
• 700 g ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped
• 1/4-1/2 preserved lemon, finely chopped (use the rind only & discard the flesh)
• 1 tablespoon capers, rinsed & drained
• 1 teaspoon tabil (tabil - traditional tunisian spice mix)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon harissa
• 1 egg, beaten
• fresh ground black pepper, to taste
• 30 rectangular phyllo pastry sheets (approx 4.5-inchx6.5-inch)
• sunflower oil or vegetable oil, for frying

Recipe

• 1 put the prawns in a bowl with the cilantro, lemon, capers, spice, salt & harissa. add the ricotta & mix together using your hands or a wooden spoon.
• 2 mix in the egg & the black pepper.
• 3 take a sheet of phyllo pastry, fold in half to strengthen. place a line of filling in the middle of the sheet, then roll up tightly - making sure to tuck the sides over the filling first. you can seal the fingers with a little water - this will stop the oil seeping in & the filling from bubbling out.
• 4 pour enough sunflower or vegetable oil into a large frying pan to cover the bottom by 1/2". heat the oil over a medium heat until it is around 180c, then fry the fingers in batches for around 8-10 minutes or until they are crisp & deep golden, you will need to turn them so that they cook evenly.
• 5 remove the fingers wfrom the oil with a slotted spoon & stand upright on plenty of kitchen paper to drain. serve warm. (if you do want to make these slightly ahead of time, you can fry them & reheat in the oven but take care not to leave them too long as the prawns will over cook & become rubbery.