Carrot Kofte & Tahini Yoghurt Dressing

Carrot Kofte
olive oil
boiling water
300g carrots, roughly chopped
3-4 dried apricots, chopped
2 spring onions, chopped
1 tbsp pine nuts, or sunflower seeds lightly toasted
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
50g dried breadcrumbs
1/2 tsp  sweet pepper flakes
1 tbsp fresh coriander, roughly chopped
1 tbsp fresh parsley, roughly chopped
1 tsp dried mint
1 egg, beaten
salt and freshly ground black pepper

tahini and yoghurt dressing
200ml plain yoghurt
150g tahini
1 garlic clove, very finely chopped
juice of 1 lemon
salt and freshly ground black pepper
smoked paprika

Simmer the carrots in lightly salted water for about 20 minutes until the carrots have softened.
Drain the carrots and tip into a blender together with the dried apricots, spring onions, pine nuts and garlic. Blend until smooth. Transfer to a bowl add  breadcrumbs , fresh herbs and dried mint. Check the seasoning and then add the beaten egg. Set aside for 10 minutes or so to allow the breadcrumbs to absorb some of the liquid – the mixture will begin to firm up. If it looks very runny then you will need to add more breadcrumbs.With wet hands form the mixture either into fat sausage shapes (for kofte) or flattened balls (for burgers). Refrigerate for at least an hour until firm.
Make the dressing by combining the plain yoghurt with tahini, garlic and lemon juice. Adjust the seasoning to suit your taste and set aside to allow the flavour to develop.
Heat enough olive oil to fill a large frying pan about 1 cm deep, over a medium heat.
Gently fry the koftas in batches until lightly golden brown (about 8 minutes). Try not to manhandle them in the pan too much as they are relatively fragile. Drain on kitchen paper when cooked.
Sprinkle a little smoked paprika over the tahini and yoghurt dressing and serve with the warm kofte.