Ingredients

• 1 cup flour
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup milk
• 1/2 pound salted codfish, flaked
• 1 sprig fresh thyme
• 2 sprigs flat-leaf parsley
• 1 scallion, including green top
• 2 chives
• 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
• 1/2 Scotch Bonnet chile
• Corn oil, for frying (2 inches)

Instructions

1. For the batter, mix the flour and the seasoning together in a medium-size bowl. Make a well in the middle of the flour mixture and break the eggs into the well 1 at a time while beating the mixture has become a thick, uniform paste.
2. Cover the bowl with a dampened cloth and allow it to rest for 1 to 4 hours. For the fish, place the flaked codfish, thyme, parsley, scallion, chives, allspice, and chile in the bowl of a food processor and grind them together into a thick paste. Fold this paste into the acras batter.
3. Meanwhile, heat 2 inches of corn oil to 350 to 375 degrees F in a heavy cast-iron pot or deep fryer. Drop the acras into it by the teaspoonful. Fry until they are light brown, turning once. When done, remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.