Zucchini Fritters

While perusing recipes and trying to find new ways to cope with the seasonal zucchini overabundance from my mom's garden  I came across this recipe for Zucchini Fritters from Once Upon a Chef, to see the original post, click here. 

 Few notes on the ingredients: I used one SUPER sized zucchini after halving it and scooping out the seeds and overly pithy center. I also used cornstarch instead of flour. I also was VERY generous in my usage of dill and scallion and it didn't take away anything from the fritter, so feel free to be generous in your usage.

They are incredible and are definitely going to be an August staple in my kitchen


Ingredients: 
2. medium zucchini shredded
1 tsp. salt
2 large eggs
2 large scallions
2 tablespoons minced fresh dill
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 med. garlic clove, minced or finely chopped
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1/4 cup cornstarch (or flour)
1/2 tsp. baking powder
3 tablespoons olive oil, plus some more if needed

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Shred your zucchini (I used my food processor to expedite) mix with salt and transfer to a fine-mesh strainer to drain. Allow the zucchini to sit for at least ten minutes. 

I then took the zucchini and wrung it out in a paper towel, the volume of the zucchini shrunk by half after I got all of the water out. 

Beat the eggs, mix in the zucchini, scallions, dill, feta, garlic, and black pepper. 

Add the corn starch (or flour) and baking powder and mix until it is incorporated. 

Heat the olive oil in a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Be sure to watch that the oil doesn't become too hot. Drop 2 tablespoon-sized portions into the pan and gently press down into fritters. 

Pan fry until golden brown about 3 minutes per side. 

Transfer the fritters to a paper towel-lined plate. 

Note that your fritters, once cooked may still be "bendy" when you transfer them to the plate. Allowing the fritters to rest for at least a minute or two will help them to firm up before serving. 

I served ours with store-bought tzatziki sauce on the side. 

If anyone knows a good tzatziki recipe, please send it my way I've been on the hunt for a good homemade option. 

xoxox

Maple Pumpkin Pie with Rosemary Chestnut Crumble Topping

In keeping with the spirit of the upcoming Thanksgiving holiday, and wanting to make something for my Grandmother's birthday I decided to try to incorporate chestnuts, a traditional Italian ingredient that my grandmother loves, with pumpkin pie. The challenge was my Grandmother has a bit of a sweet tooth so I wanted to make sure that I balanced a sweet dessert with a savory element, hence the rosemary.  

 I tried foregoing a pie crust, not a great idea.
While I was happy with the flavor of the pie, the consistency was a little difficult to serve.
I see pie crusts in my future when I make this again. 

Pie: 

1 1/2 cans of Pumpkin 

2 large eggs 

1 cup of heavy cream

3/4 cup maple syrup

1 tsp cinnamon 

1/2 tsp. ginger

1/2 tsp. salt 

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract 

1/4 tsp. nutmeg 

Topping: 

1 cup of chopped roasted chestnuts

1/2 cup sugar

1 stick of butter (melted) 

1 cup of  unseasoned Panko (gluten free or regular) crumbs 

2 tbsp. chopped Rosemary

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. nutmeg 

1/8 tsp. salt

Topping: 

Take a small bowl, add 1/4 cup of the melted butter and the chopped rosemary, allow the butter to infuse for 5 minutes. 

Add the chopped chestnuts to a pan, with the rosemary infused butte. 

Cook over medium-low heat for 3-4 minutes stirring thoroughly.

Turn off the heat (be sure to remove the pan from the burner) add all the remaining ingredients. Mix thoroughly, the topping should have a consistency similar to sand. 

Reserve for later. 

Pie: 

Preheat the oven to 350° F 

Mix the pie ingredients thoroughly making sure there are no lumps. 

Pour mixture into your baking dish/pie crust. 

Bake in the oven at 350° F for 60-70 minutes. 15 minutes before the pie is done cooking remove the pie from the oven and add the crumble topping. 

Let the pie cool thoroughly before serving.