Zucchini and Summer Squash Fritters

It’s been months and months since we’ve had a Fritter Friday!  It seems we run hot and cold on those.  When it’s hot it’s an easy fix for seasonal vegetables along with our grilled meat.  When it’s cold we don’t think of it, we’re too busy hovering over a hot bowl of soup here up North.  Usually we only fritter away our time in the summer months. Probably due to the heat.

I had yellow summer squash and zucchini, so it would be a colorful fritter.  I could have had some orange in there with a little shredded carrot but I got lazy after shredding the squash.  I wanted to try yet another new recipe, this one called for Jarlsberg cheese which would have made it quite a bit different.  I opted to use a strong white cheddar from Wisconsin.  Distinctive enough in its own right.

Shred 2 cups of zucchini and summer squash

After shredding the summer squash and zucchini, I put it in my trusty jelly strainer bag and squeezed the daylights out of it.  I probably got over ½ cup of water out of the squash and that’s excellent.  The less water we have in the squash the crispier and firmer the fritter will be.  There is nothing worse than soggy fritters.

Place in tea towel, jelly strainer bag, or cheesecloth and squeeze excess water out

I added the eggs and flour to a large bowl along with the shredded squash.  I measured in the seasonings.

Add to bowl with rest of ingredients

Last I added the shredded cheese and stirred well.  My mixture was still pretty crumbly and wasn’t sticking together in the least.  I maybe had extra shredded zucchini and summer squash.  The recipe had only called for 2 cups and I maybe had 3.  I simply added another egg and mixed and this time it was playing well with others and forming pancakes nicely.  The mixture is not a very wet one.

Mix well

I’d heated a large nonstick skillet on medium high with a few tablespoons of oil and placed heaping tablespoons of the fritter batter into rounds.  I pressed down to flatten them and let them fry until crispy on one side.  They get quite dark, and that’s good for the flavor and the texture.  Flip, brown again, then remove to paper toweling.

Drop heaping tablespoons into hot skillet and press down lightly to flatten

You could keep them in an ovenproof dish in the oven to keep them warm until they are all made.  My batter made maybe 16-20 2 ½-in fritters and we like them hot, cold, or room temp.

Place on toweling while continuing to fry more fritters

I stirred together some sour cream, chili powder, dill and garlic powder for dipping.  The sauce was simple and balanced out the richness of the squash and cheese pretty well.  You could make it as spicy or tame as you like.

Summer Squash and Zucchini Fritters

Fritters are a great side dish with nearly anything.  I served them with some turkey wild rice soup I’d made. We loved them so much there were only 3 left.  They weren’t filling, we just kept on eating them.

Zucchini and Summer Squash Fritters

Cheesy Squash and  Zucchini Fritters

2 cups shredded zucchini, summer squash, or some of both
1 cup shredded Jarlsberg cheese (I used white cheddar)
1/3 cup grated onions
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
large pinch cayenne
1/2 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 eggs
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup Panko
Canola oil

Place the shredded zucchini into a cheese cloth, jelly strainer or tea towel and wring out well. You should get at least 1/4-1/2 cup of liquid.  Discard liquid.

Place the zucchini, onion, garlic powder, cayenne, thyme, cheese, salt, pepper, eggs, flour and panko in a bowl. Mix until thoroughly combined.

In a large skillet add 3 tablespoons of oil and heat over medium-high heat until the oil starts to shimmer.  Drop heaping tablespoons of the zucchini fritter into the oil.  Flatten with a spoon or spatula.

Fry until they are golden brown, about 4 minutes.  Flip and cook another 4 minutes.

Place on paper toweling.  Repeat the process, adding more oil if necessary.

Serve with sour cream seasoned with chili powder, dill and garlic powder to taste.

Adapted from The Kitchen Whisperer