Remember the time-consuming but delicious zucchini gratin? Jasper has been requesting it with increasing desperation over the last few weeks but I just didn’t have the emotional fortitude or stamina to go there. I’m blaming the relentless heat and humidity over these past months.
So when I saw a Neil Perry recipe for zucchini fritters on the SMH website I hoped I’d struck a middle ground. I’ve added some mint to my recipe and would encourage you to do the same.
These were an absolute sensation, heading straight to the pool room of family dinner winners. You could even make smaller ones as a finger food option. Don’t think the yoghurt sauce is optional – as is always the case when there’s a sauce on the side it lifts the meal from yum to YUM!
- 1 kg zucchini, grated
- 2 tsp salt
- 200 g haloumi cheese, grated
- 100 g stale white breadcrumbs
- 1 heaped tbsp fresh dill, chopped
- 1 heaped tbsp fresh mint, chopped
- lots of freshly ground black pepper
- 2 eggs
- For the yoghurt sauce
- 1 cup thick Greek yoghurt
- Grated zest from half a lemon
- 1 small garlic clove, crushed
- pinch of sea salt
- Using a food processor grate the zucchinis then toss with the salt in a colander and set in the sink to drain for an hour.
- Use the same grater blade to grate the haloumi which you’re going to then tip into a mixing bowl
- Change the attachment and blitz your stale bread into fine breadcrumbs
- Mix the haloumi, breadcrumbs and herbs together while you wait for the zucchini
- In the meantime, make the yoghurt sauce by mixing the four ingredients together
- After an hour or so, squeeze as much liquid out of the zucchini as you can. When you think you’ve squeezed it all out go in for another round
- Mix the zucchini and the eggs in with the other ingredients
- You want to work quickly now
- Heat some oil in a pan, you want to shallow fry them, then shape the mixture into patties a bit bigger than a golf ball. You can really make them as big or as small as you like
- Cook for about two minutes on either side or until golden brown
- Serve with the yoghurt sauce.
I make these all the time and just got out an obscenely large phallic looking zucchini from friend’s garden that has been waiting in my fridge to make them again tonight. Agree re mint and dill. Love NP recipes in Sat papers, doable.
Off to walk the dog with podcast no7…thank you
They were so good! And I’m always surprised that NP’s recipes are accessible and doable.