Bolinhos De Bacalhau (codfish Balls)

INGREDIENTS

INSTRUCTIONS

The Cook & Kitchen Staff are taking you to four different corners of
the world to serve up a variety of regional holiday specialties.  We're
starting our Christmas collection with a brief jaunt to Brazil,  where
the holidays are a very festive time of the year.  Skip the snow
shovels and frost-painted windows; it's summertime  south of the
equator, and the average temperature demands that lunch  be served on
the beach and or as a picnic in the park. It's the time  of the year to
visit with friends and celebrate the coming new year.  Today's recipe
is just the sort of appetizer you may find served to  guests in a
Brazilian home right now.  Portuguese in origin and deeply rooted in
Brazil's history, today's  recipe remains an extremely popular dish
during the holidays in  Brazil. Portuguese being the language of Brazil
means that you can  prepare today's recipe and greet your guests with
"Feliz Natal" at  the door and put the kids to work in the kitchen with
you as they  attempt to produce their best behavior awaiting a visit
for Papai  Noel.  Soak salt cod overnight, making sure to rinse and
change the water at  least three times. Remove skin and any bones. Cut
salt cod into small  chunks.  In a large saucepan over medium heat,
heat 2 cups of water with the  thinly sliced onion, bayleaf, and
peppercorns. Add the cod and an  additional 2 cups of water to the
saucepan and poach the cod until  it's no longer transparent, about 5
minutes after the hot water has  returned to a light rolling boil. (You
may elect to refrigerate the  cod in the liquid mixture until you're
ready to prepare your Bolinhos  de Bacalhau.)  To form the bolinhos,
drain the fish and flake it into a large mixing  bowl. Add the mashed
potatoes, eggs, salt, pepper, and parsley. Mix  well with freshly
cleaned hands or a wooden spoon. Wait about half an  hour for the
ingredients to diffuse their flavor and to form the  balls. Roll small
portions of the mixture into balls about 1  1/2-inches in diameter.  In
a heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat, warm oil for  frying to
375-F degrees. Fry the cod balls in the oil until golden,  and remove
to paper towels to drain excess oil. Serve warm with a  cold beverage.
Kitchen Staff Tips: Today's recipe is the most basic version of
Bolinhos de Bacalhau in our recipe files. You may elect to spice up
the flavor with a half-cup of thinly sliced onions, or sweet peppers,
or both. This appetizer is also sometimes prepared with a bit of
minced olives or dried tomatoes, so don't be afraid to add a splash  of
flavor and color to the potato and cod mixture before frying. Salt  cod
may be challenging to find. Try at a fish specialty market or
international specialty store.  Posted to dailyrecipe@recipe-a-day.com
by Recipe-a-Day  <recipe-a-day@bignetwork.com> on Dec 1, 1998,
converted by MM_Buster  v2.0l.

A Message from our Provider:

“Worry is the darkroom in which negatives can develop.”

Nutrition (calculated from recipe ingredients)
----------------------------------------------
Calories: 282
Calories From Fat: 54
Total Fat: 6.1g
Cholesterol: 176.9mg
Sodium: 5503.8mg
Potassium: 1263mg
Carbohydrates: 3.2g
Fiber: 1.7g
Sugar: <1g
Protein: 51.2g