Sicilian Stuffed Sardines

Serves: to serve 6

Prep Time: 15 Minutes

Cook Time: 10 Minutes

Ready In: 25 mins

Ingredients

1 - lemon

1 - orange

1 tablespoon - caster sugar (superfine sugar)

2 teaspoons - white wine vinegar

1 tablespoon - olive oil

6 - anchovy fillets

4 slices - white bread

2 teaspoons - drained capers

1½ oz - pine nuts

1½ oz - sultanas

1 tablespoon - finely chopped mint leaves

24 - sardines

12 - bay leaves

Directions

1. Scale the sardines by running a knife blade down each side "against" the normal lie of the scales. Remove the head and innards of each sardine. Cut the crusts from the bread and use a blender to break it into fine breadcrumbs. Zest the lemon and squeeze the juice from both the lemon and orange. Whisk the lemon and orange juices, sugar, vinegar and ¼ teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper in a small bowl then set aside.
2. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Add the anchovy fillets and cook for 1 minute, stirring, or until melted. Add 2½oz (70g) breadcrumbs and cook for a further 4 minutes or until light golden. Remove from the heat, add the lemon zest, capers, pine nuts, sultanas and mint and stir to combine. Season with pepper and set aside.
3. Scatter 2 tablespoons of breadcrumbs over the base of a lined oven tray. Place 12 of the filleted sardines, skin-side down, in a baking dish and spread 2 teaspoons of anchovy filling over each. Top with the remaining 12 sardines, skin-side up, and place a bay leaf between each sardine pair. Drizzle with the lemon and orange mixture and scatter over the remaining 2 tablespoons of breadcrumbs. Bake in a preheated moderately hot oven (Mk 6 - 400ºF - 200ºC) for 10 minutes or until the sardines are just cooked. Eat while hot with a few new potatoes and fried tomato.