Fritter it away

Asparagus is sprouting in the colder climes and starting to show up at farmers' markets and in supermarkets labeled "local."  If you're looking for what to do with those spearheads of Spring, check out an earlier April post for some sensational ideas: asparagus bread pudding, asparagus escabeche, asparagus clafoutis, asparagus pilaf, pickled asparagus and more. Pictured here: bread pudding, escabeche and clafoutis.

Many other vegetables springing to life and coming soon can feed everybody's love of fried food-- tasty, crunchy and filling--when turned into fritters.  Fritter comes from the Latin for "fry"  as does the French word "frites" translated as French fries (deep fried potatoes), and it signifies some sort of fried batter ferrying fruit (remember apple fritters?), vegetables or meat. A fritter can be round like a falafel ball, or triangular like a samosa, or flat like a pancake and called a patty or pancake if not a fritter.  I find the patty fritter the most congenial to make because it doesn't have to be deep fried (some you can actually bake and they will appear fried) and the prettiest to serve. So as summer and vegetables roll in, here are ideas to save and savor for frittering them away.

Fresh pea fritters with mint and feta

I've recently and earlier posted the fresh pea "hummus" recipe and in my book Veggiyana, The Dharma of Cooking, the kids' favorite smashed peas recipe. I also recently posted a wonderful Sicilian fish recipe with fresh peas and tomatoes.  Well here's a brand new way to handle all those fresh peas: smashed peas  frying into fritters in the photo. What a side for salmon!
This makes about a dozen patties.

1 lb shelled fresh green peas

4 1/2 ounces whole-milk ricotta cheese

3 large eggs, beaten

Finely grated zest of 1 lemon, and lemon wedges for serving (cut after zesting)

3/4 teaspoon salt

Freshly ground black pepper

Optional: 1 tablespoons Israeli za'atar

1/2 tsp mild chili like Aleppo pepper or chipotle

2/3 cup flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1 cup packed mint leaves, finely chopped

7 ounces feta cheese, crumbled

About 3 1/3 cups corn or safflower oil, for frying

Smash the peas in a food processor so they are coarsely crushed. Put them in a large a mixing bowl. Stir in the ricotta, eggs, lemon zest, salt, a good grind of pepper, optionally the za'atar, ground chili, flour and baking powder. Mixing until they are blended. Gently fold in the mint and feta.

Heat the oil in a medium skillet or frying pan over medium heat. Line a plate with paper towels.

With a large flattish spoon, make large balls you flatten into patties or make patties about 2” wide. Fry as many as fit in one layer in the pan 3 to 4 minutes, then with tongs, turn them and brown evenly. Use a slotted spatula to transfer them to the lined plate while you cook the remaining batch.

Serve warm, with lemon wedges and garnish with fresh mint leaves.

Leek Patties with Dill

The subtle intriguing flavors made this a friends' and family favorite. These fritters can be served warm or at room temperature, as a meal in themselves, as a first course or as a side dish. I often make them when I don't know what else to cook.  

Makes 12, serves 6-8

6 lg leeks, white and light green parts only

1 tbsp fresh chives, minced

1/4 c fresh dill, finely chopped

2 eggs, beaten

½-2/3 cup dried breadcrumbs

1 tsp coarse sea salt

½ tsp freshly ground black pepper

2 tbsp corn or canola oil for frying

1 lemon

boiled, pureed leeks

Cut the leeks in half lengthwise and crosswise and rinse to clean.

Put leeks in a large saucepan, cover with water and bring to a boil.

Lower heat to simmer and cook uncovered about 25 minutes, until leeks are soft. Drain well. Wrap leeks in a heavy towel to squeeze out as much excess water as possible.

Coarsely chop the leeks. Put in a bowl with the chives, dill, salt and pepper. Stir in the breadcrumbs. (Enough to take up any remaining moisture in the leeks.) Blend in the eggs. 

Make 8 patties that are about ½ inch thick.

In a large nonstick skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Arrange the patties in the pan so they don’t touch (you may have to do this in two batches) and cook until brown on the bottom side, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook another 1-2 minutes so both sides are evenly browned. Remove from the pan and drain on paper towels.

Serve with a squirt of lemon juice and a wedge of lemon.

Optionally sprinkle minced fresh flat leaf parsley on the plate.

Can be served warm or cold.

Greek Zucchini Fritters

What I love about these Kolokithokeftedes as they are known in Greece, along with the flavor, is the way they use up those baseball bat sized zucchini. But I also love them because I figured out they could be baked and come out looking fried. This makes them not only easier and less messy to prepare but healthier to eat. They look elegant on a large plate with a bowl of tsatsiki (the Greek yogurt, dill and cucumber mix also known as raita in Indian cooking) in the center and lemon wedges all around.

This makes a mass of fritters.

2½ lbs zucchini, grated

1 red onion, grated

2 spring onions, finely chopped

2-3 tbsps fresh mint, finely chopped

2 eggs

1½ cup feta cheese, grated

salt and freshly ground pepper

2 cups fine breadcrumbs

2 tbsps extra virgin olive oil

2 tbsps parsley, finely chopped

oil for frying

Use a grater to grate the zucchini and place them in a colander with some salt. (This is the worst part.) Squeeze them with your hands to get rid of the excessive water. Leave them for 30 minutes and squeeze them again. Put them into a large bowl and add the other ingredients. Mix well with your hands until everything is combined and firm enough to make balls or patties. Add breadcrumbs as needed.

To fry: In a pan, add enough olive oil to cover the bottom of the pan, and heat the oil into medium-high heat.

Dip a tablespoon in some water and spoon out some of the mixture into the hot oil. Repeat this procedure until the surface off the pan is comfortably filled. You should dip the spoon in the water every time, so that the dough doesn’t stick on it.

Fry the kolokithokeftedes for about 2-3 minutes on each side, until nicely colored. Place them on paper towel, to absorb the extra oil.

A healthier alternative is to bake patties. Preheat the oven to 425º, oil the bottom of a baking tray and form patties with your hands. Place on the baking tray and brush the top with some olive oil. Bake for 10 minutes, then flip and bake another 10-15 until all patties are nicely brown. 

Serve hot or room temp with fresh cold yogurt or tsatsiki.

Tomato Fritters

Yes, you can. These are delicate so they require patience and attention but they are different enough to get praise and perfect for when you're out of ideas for something besides salad to use up tomatoes.

1 1/2 lbs ripe plum or cherry tomatoes, grated or finely chopped

3 scallions, white and tender green parts, finely chopped

2 Tbsp. fresh flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped

4 Tbsp. fresh mint, finely chopped

Pinch of cinnamon

Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

1¼ - 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour or fine ground chickpea flour, as needed

½ tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp extra virgin olive oil

Vegetable oil for frying (olive oil has a low smoke point but you can use it for the flavor by mixing a bit into corn or canola oil)

In a large bowl, mix together the grated or chopped tomatoes, scallions, herbs, cinnamon, salt, and pepper. Combine 1¼ cups of the flour and the baking powder in a small bowl and add it to the tomatoes, mixing well. Add the olive oil. Add flour if necessary to give the mixture the consistency of a thick batter. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.

Cover the bottom of a large heavy skillet with 1” of oil. Heat over medium-high heat. When the oil is very hot, drop a tablespoon of the batter at a time into the skillet and fry the tomato fritters on both sides until golden. Remove with a slotted spoon and let drain on paper towels. Serve hot.

Sweet Potato Fritters
These are very delicate especially for beginning fritterers but they are worth a try once in a while because they're so great for brunch. They work with a baked ham and roast pork loin too.
Makes 22-24 fritters

2 large sweet potatoes, or 1 red yam and 1 sweet potato, 1½ lbs

2 eggs

¼ cup fine corn meal

1 tsp brown sugar

½ tsp fresh ginger, minced

1/8 tsp orange flower water or ½ tsp orange juice

¼ tsp ground cardamom

¼ tsp ground nutmeg

1 tsp salt

1/3 cup pecans, chopped and lightly toasted

¼ cup dark raisins

30 oz of peanut oil or corn oil or half of each

Peel the sweet potatoes.  Cut them into chunks and divide into three.

Put two thirds in a small saucepan, cover with water and boil about 20 minutes until potatoes are soft.  Grate the remainder.

Drain cooked sweet potatoes and put them in a food processor or blender with eggs, corn meal, brown sugar, ginger, orange liquid, cardamom, nutmeg and salt. Puree, trying to keep it thick.

Pour into a large bowl and stir in pecans, raisins, and grated potato.

In a very deep saucepan or whatever you use for deep-frying, heat oil over high heat to sizzling.  Scoop up the batter with a soupspoon and use another spoon to tamp it, lightly flattening, so it holds together. Drop into the oil. Add as many as the pot will hold before fritters touch each other.  Fry for 3-5 minutes, until the fritters are a rich dark brown. They will pop up to the top when cooked. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels.

You can put them on a cookie sheet and keep them warm in a 250º oven while you continue frying.

Serve plain or with maple syrup or spiced yogurt. Great for brunch with scrambled eggs.

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In the fall we'll do several versions of the corn fritter, Turkish pumpkin pancakes and the Eastern European potato pancake sometimes called a latke.