Boom! Parsnip Grenades

Corny name for a substantial snack, I know, but I was struggling to give these spicy morsels a name. Originally I was going to call them 'Parsnip Balls of Fire', but its a mouthful, then 'Parsnip Bombs' crossed my mind as they reminded me of the Green Seed Bombs, however D suggested that the oblong egg shapes looked more like hand grenades, hence the final chosen name: 'Parsnip Grenades', albeit edible ones.

These Spicy Parsnip Grenades are huge, almost the size of the palm of my hand. I think they make a good and substantial lunch and if presented well, I think these would be excellent food on the go, certainly for picnics.

So where did the idea for these Spicy Parsnip Grenades come from?! I had made too much filling for the Parsnip Samosa and instead of ditching it, I stated thinking of frugal ways to use it up.  I remembered the thought of making some Parsnip Arancini aka risotto balls with some left Parsnip Risotto, I also remembered visiting Henderson in Edinburgh and looking in their food counter at one of the mightiest deep fried croquettes I had ever seen. So with these memories buzzing in my head, I thought I'd create some spicy parsnip rissoles. However the spicy mashed parsnip filling was a little sloppy; to this I decided to add some cooked brown rice. I didn't need to add any eggs to hold or bind the ingredients together, as the sticky mushiness of the parsnips worked its magic here.  All I had to do was tweak and adjust the seasoning, in this case salt and then shape the mixture between the palm of my hands.

From shaping them into round balls, I found myself moulding them into large teardrops. I coated them in a little beaten egg and then dipped them in breadcrumbs and they were ready to be deep fried.

Here I’ve used a beaten egg to coat the Spiced Parsnip Grenades, but they can easily be made vegan by coating them in chickpea batter and then deep fried.

I deep fried these in a wide pan, filled with vegetable oil, but I would strongly advise you making these in a deep fat fryer.  One of the benefits is it will cook more evenly, as you will not need to gently turn it over to turn golden.

I served it with garlicky curly kale. I could have poshed it up even more with a drizzling of spicy tomato chilli sauce, but you know its not always easy taking pictures outside your front door with people walking and driving by staring and rubber necking from curiosity: at a man with a camera, and a woman holding a plate of food. Ah the things we do...