Zucchini Fritters

The garden is producing veggies by the armful and this most frequently means zucchini and squash. I've been trying to find new recipes in which to use these wonderful fresh veggies and will start sharing them with you here on the The Simple Gourmand.

First, let's talk fritters. To be honest, I had never made them before embarking on this venture, but who doesn't love fried veggies? The beauty of this recipe is that you can make it with either zucchini or squash. You can also alter the herbs to your liking. I used oregano because it is taking over my garden and needs some taming - well, that, and I thought it would be a nice with the zucchini and parmesan. It turned out well, but you could also try mint, basil, or thyme in place of, or in addition to, the oregano.

Zucchini Fritters

2 C grated zucchini

1 small red onion, finely chopped

1 C freshly grated parmesan cheese

1 C toasted bread crumbs

2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 Tbsp chopped fresh oregano
Salt & pepper to taste

2 Tbsp vegetable oil

Place grated zucchini in a colander and sprinkle with salt, let stand for 30 minutes. Squeeze excess water from zucchini and transfer zucchini to a medium sized bowl. Mix in the next 6 ingredients.

Heat oil in a cast iron skillet over medium heat. When oil is hot, but not smoking, place tablespoon sized dollops of the zucchini mixture in the oil. Be careful not to over crowd the pan; you likely will  need to do two batches. Fry until fritters begin to brown and then turn to brown the other side. Remove fritters from oil and drain on a paper towel lined plate. Serve with sour cream.

Happy 4th of July!

To round out the series of posts about 4th of July barbeque dishes I thought I'd share this awesome corn on the cob recipe I made yesterday. Of course, I had to make some changes from the original recipes because I didn't have all of the herbs called for, so I substituted with herbs from my garden. I found the original recipe in the July issue of Food & Wine, which, in case you haven't checked it out already, is a fabulous magazine! I'll post the recipe with my changes below, but you can find the original here.

Grilled Corn on the Cob with Roasted Garlic and Herbs
1 head of garlic
1 tsp olive oil
Finely grated zest of 1 lemon
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
1/4 C chopped fresh rosemary
Salt & freshly ground pepper
4 large ears of corn, in husks

Preheat oven to 350°. Cut off the top of the head of garlic. Stand it cut side up on foil and drizzle with oil. Wrap in foil and bake for about 1 hour, or until very soft. Squeeze garlic into a bowl. Stir in lemon zest, butter, and rosemary. Season with salt and pepper.

Light grill. Carefully peel back the corn husks, keeping them attached. Discard the silk. Spread the herbed garlic butter all over the corn. Fold the husks back over the corn and wrap the corn in foil. Grill the corn packet over moderate heat for 15 minutes, turning about every 3 minutes. Remove the foil and continue to grill the ears over moderate heat for another 5 minutes, turning until the husks are nicely charred. Serve immediately.