Carrot keftedes with pomegranate skordalia and carrot salad

Method

1. First, make the keftedes. Preheat the oven to 200°C/fan180°C/gas 6. Peel the carrots, then top and tail them. Drizzle with a little olive oil, put in a roasting tin and roast for 30-40 minutes until cooked but with a slight bite, turning halfway through. Leave to cool, then grate into a bowl and mix with the rest of the keftedes ingredients, apart from the egg, flour and sunflower oil. Season generously with sea salt and black pepper, then chill for 1 hour (or up to 24 hours).
2. To make the skordalia, dunk the bread in cold water, then squeeze out the excess. Put in a food processor with the garlic, pomegranate molasses and a pinch of sea salt. Blend until smooth, slowly adding the olive oil while the motor is running. Chill until needed.
3. For the salad, slice the carrot lengthways into ribbons using a vegetable peeler, then toss with the rest of the ingredients and some seasoning.
4. To cook the keftedes, stir the egg through the chilled mixture, then mould into 12 rugby ball shapes (around 40g each). Gently heat a good layer of sunflower oil in a frying pan. When it begins to shimmer, add half the keftedes and fry for a few minutes, turning, until golden all over. Repeat with the remaining keftedes, then remove, drain on kitchen paper and serve with the skordalia and carrot salad. You can keep these warm in the oven for 30 minutes if you need to.