Sicilian Stuffed Sardines Recipes

Steps:

• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6. Put the breadcrumbs, olives, parsley, mint, lemon zest, anchovies and garlic in a food processor, and blitz until everything is roughly chopped. Tip into a bowl and stir through the pine nuts, sultanas, chilli flakes (if using) and a good grinding of black pepper. Arrange the fennel slices in a small roasting dish and drizzle with a little olive oil.
• Working methodically, lay each fish fillet, skin-side down, on your work surface, cover with some of the crumb mixture, then drizzle ½ tsp olive oil over each. Roll up the fillets, leaving the tails sticking up. Use a cocktail stick to secure, then stuff a little more of the crumb mixture into the sides.
• Arrange the rolled-up sardines on the fennel, scatter over the remaining crumb mixture, then pop the slices of lemon and bay leaves in the gaps. Drizzle with the remaining olive oil and season with sea salt and pepper. Bake in the oven for 20 mins until the fish is cooked through and the crumbs are golden and crisp in places. Serve scattered with the fennel fronds.

Steps:

• 1 Place a rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 375°F. Oil a small baking pan. 2 In a large skillet, toast the bread crumbs over medium heat, stirring constantly, until browned. Remove from the heat and stir in just enough oil to moisten them. Add the anchovies, parsley, pine nuts, raisins, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well. 3 Open the sardines like a book and place them skin side down on a flat surface. Spoon a little of the bread crumb mixture at the head end of each sardine. Roll up the sardines, enclosing the filling, and place them side by side in the pan, separating each with a bay leaf. Sprinkle any remaining crumbs over the top and drizzle with the remaining oil. 4 Bake 20 minutes or until the rolls are just cooked through. Serve hot or at room temperature with lemon wedges. From "1,000 Italian Recipes." Copyright 2004 by Michele Scicolone. Used with permission of the publisher, Wiley Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.