Zucchini Fritters

I'm slowly getting back on my feet and this means getting back into the kitchen. Exciting times. Since my endurance for standing is very limited, I've been preparing simple dinners quickly.

Now, although zucchini is in its bounty in late summer, you can still find and enjoy it year-round. So with the zucchini season half a year away, I made zucchini fritters using organic zucchini and served with a green salad, roasted garlic and warm, whole wheat bread.



Most of the recipes out there for zucchini fritters have a few common ingredients- zucchini, eggs and breadcrumbs or flour. Here is my fool-proof, go-to recipe. Some recipes ask you to drain the water from the zucchini by letting it sit in a colander with salt for an hour, but there's really no need. Just be sure to squeeze out a little of the liquid in each patty using your hands before adding to the hot frying pan.

Zucchini Fritters (Serves 4)
In season during late summer, these fritters are delicious topped with a little sour cream, yogurt or feta cheese with roasted tomatoes and diced scallions, red or green onions.

Ingredients
2 medium zucchini, grated
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tbsp parsley, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 eggs, lightly beaten
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 cup flour
salt and pepper
olive oil, butter

Directions
Grate zucchini into a medium sized bowl. Add lemon zest, chopped parsley, garlic, salt, pepper, and lightly beaten eggs. Mix well to combine.

Sowly add flour and mix.

Heat 1 tsp butter and 1 tsp olive oil in a large frying pan. Drop a wooden spoon size of zucchini mixture into the pan; repeat with spacing in between until the pan is full. Cook fritters until golden, 3-4 minutes per side. Keep the fritters warm in the oven until you are ready to serve.

Try serving with Mexican Chickpea Salad
or Roasted Red Potato and Artichoke Salad

Zucchini, Cherry Tomatoes, Olives, and Basil

Every year Bon Appetit publishes a restaurant issue of the magazine, an excellent keepstake issue. The recipes are delicious, always turn out and are more interesting in composition and presentation.

The first section I ended up pouring over was the Gordon Ramsay at Home section. I haven't paid much attention to Ramsay outside of Hell's Kitchen, but to have the reputation he has, you've got to have some great recipes behind you, and a bit of charm. This recipe for Sautéed Zucchini, Cherry Tomatoes, Olives, and Basil has turned out to be one of my new favorites. It's simple yet delicious, and you can do almost anything with it. Turn it into a pasta dish, serve with grains, rice, couscous, or on it's own. Leftovers make a great lunch the next day too.

Sauteed Zucchini, Cherry Tomatoes, Olives, and Basil (serves 6)

Ingredients
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 pounds yellow and green zucchini, trimmed and cut into 1/2 inch thick slices
2 garlic cloves
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped rosemary
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1/3 cup halved pitted Kalamata olives
1/4 cup chopped basil
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Directions
Add oil in a large fry pan over medium heat. Add zucchini, garlic and rosemary. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Sauté until zucchini is just tender, about 5 minutes.

Add tomatoes and olives. Sauté until tomatoes just begin to soften, about 2 minutes. Mix in basil and vinegar. Serve and enjoy.