Ham Croquetas

Photo: Barcelona Bites

Ingredients

2 ounces (60 g) diced ham (and I'm talking about the good stuff here like jamón serrano or pr

1/2 pound (200 g) diced onions

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon butter

cup (40 g) flour

1 cup (¼ L) mi lk

1 pinch of nutmeg

salt and pepper to taste

1 egg, flour and bread crumbs to roll the croquetas in bef

vegetable oil or olive oil for frying

Preparation

Heat the 2 tablespoons olive oil and over medium-low heat, slowly saute the onions until they are completely soft and golden brown (at least 20 mins)

Add the ham and continue to saute for a few minutes more (the longer you saute the ham, the stronger the ham flavor will be).

Turn the heat down to very low and add the flour and incorporate it well into the ham and onions. Saute for a 6-7 minutes to make sure the flour is well cooked

Add cold milk (in two parts), stirring well to blend.

While continually stirring, cook 3-4 minutes more.

Add nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste (beware that you may not even need salt because of the saltiness of the ham).

Remove from heat and spread the batter on a plate. Cover with plastic and refridgerate until well chilled.

Beat egg and put in a bowl. On one plate put a small pile of flour and on another plate put a small pile of bread crumbs.

Remove batter form fridge. Roll into ping pong sized balls and dip in flour, egg and bread crumbs (in that order).

Heat vegetable or olive oil in a saucepan (remember that you need to have enough oil so that the croquetas can be completely submerged).

Drop in balls of batter (about 5 at a time, they should not be touching) and fry until golden brown. Remove with slotted spoon and place on paper towels to drain.

Serve them while they're hot!