Recipe: Tomato Balls – Starter at Elements Restaurant

Tomatoes are a key ingredient in Santorini and generally in Greece during the summer months. They are known for their high carbohydrate content and a sweet, strongly acidic taste and mainly used for salads and cooked for sauces. There is also a variety of cherry tomato from Santorini, tomataki Santorinis, which is a special cherry tomato grown on the island of Santorini. Tomato balls is a simple recipe usually prepared at most tavernas and Greek houses but in Elements Restaurant we use fine ingredients and a very surprising way of cooking the balls and presenting to the guests.

Ingredients:

1 kg of tomatoes
80 gr. Tomato paste
200 gr olive oil
200 gr flour
2 eggs
180 gr onions
½ bunch of parsley
½ bunch of peppermint
Salt and pepper

Preparation:
Blanch and clean the tomatoes from the skin. We mince the tomato flesh and put it in a bowl. Add the onions, herbs, tomato paste, flour, eggs and olive oil and make a dough. At Elements Restaurant we cook small portions of the dough takoyaki style to make the tomato balls.

Elements Restaurant Executive Chef: Tassos Stefatos