I’m always looking for an out-of-the-ordinary side dish. One that works for weekday meals as well as entertaining. This one’s both fun to make and serve: Zucchini Carrot Fritters. It’s a simple matter of preparing the vegetables with your box grater and mashing the garbanzo beans with a fork. Add eggs, Panko, and seasonings, shape the mixture into patties and into the skillet they go with a bit of olive oil.
Mashing the garbanzo beans
A rainbow of color
I shaped my Zucchini Carrot Fritters fairly thick, because I like a softer middle, but flatter fritters give more overall crispiness.
Sauté on medium heat, being careful not to over brown.
Most fritter recipes call for salting the grated squash and squeezing out as much liquid as you can using a cloth towel. I accidentally skipped that step and was glad I did, because the consistence was just right. I used a small zucchini and let it sit on a paper towel for 5 minutes or so, but I didn’t see all that much liquid. So I don’t think this step is necessary unless you have an especially juicy zucchini.
Be Saucy
You can be innovative with the fritter topping by using something as simple as yogurt or sour cream sprinkled with a few chopped green onions. Or mix up a Tzatzika Sauce, (my favorite cucumber-yogurt combo is shown in the Recipe Gallery). A dollop of guacamole also works well. And ranch dressing makes a quick, tasty dip for the fritters.
Put a Rainbow on Your Table
Color up your plate
Health experts tells us that we should “Eat a Rainbow” each day. They say we should include a colorful array of vegetables, because that’s where the nutrition is. You sure have a rainbow in these fritters.
I could make a meal from the crisp, veggie cakes and feel like I had gotten a good supply of fiber and vitamins. The carrots alone are potent little nutrition bombs. Half a carrot provides more than double your total daily requirement of vitamin A.
Besides all that, fritters endear themselves to you because they can be eaten at any meal, as a snack, or tucked into a lunchbox. They’re good hot or cold and can be frozen and rewarmed. Those wanting to make fritters even healthier wrote of having good results sautéing them in lemon juice rather than olive oil. Definitely addictive.
Zucchini Carrot Fritters
Ingredients:
- 1 cup chickpeas, mashed
- 1 zucchini, grated (about 1 cup)
- 1 large carrot, grated (about 1 cup)
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup Panko
- 2 tsp. basil, chopped
- 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. black pepper
- olive oil
Directions:
Mash chickpeas with fork in large bowl. Set aside. Grate zucchini and carrots using box grater. If overly juicy, squeeze water from grated zucchini using clean, cloth towel.
Add vegetables, Panko, eggs, basil, garlic powder, salt and pepper to the bowl with mashed chickpeas and stir to blend.
Heat olive oil in large skillet on medium heat. (If heat is too high the outside will get over dark rather than golden brown.) Scoop 2 tablespoons of mixture into your hand and press to form a patty.
Cook for a few minutes on each side until golden brown.
Serve with a dollop of plain Greek yogurt and a sprinkle of chopped green onions. Or top with guacamole or tzatziki sauce.
