I can't believe that actually scans... clearly I missed my vocation. Anyway, when not listening to the National theatre cast recording of Oklahoma! or catching up on all the Groff based episodes of Glee I've actually managed to do some cooking. I know, I was shocked too.
It's that time of year again when the veg are glutting (is that even a word?) but inevitably whatever you choose to grown in your allotment, veg plot, the pots on your balcony, patio or drive has gone mental. Courgettes, runner beans tomatoes all seem to pick the same time and just produce loads and loads of veg. Normally I do a lot of blanching and freezing, but that demands you pick things just as they're ripe and as I've mentioned recently I've just not been around enough to be able to time that well enough.
Instead I've found myself looking for new ways with old favourites - courgettes normally become courgetti spaghetti or get used up in ratatouille that I then freeze as a base for bolognaise or pasta bakes when it's colder and I need the comfort of carby, cheesy goodness.
However, even in my house there are only so many times you can rustle up aforementioned pasta dish before Mark looks at you with despair in his eyes. So with four courgettes languishing, unloved in the veg drawer I turned to recipe books with no luck - well I did contemplate resurrecting courgette brownies, but as I keep harping on, I'm trying to be healthy and as Mark can't eat dark chocolate (don't even ask) that would have meant either foisting more cake off on my landlord, or eating it myself. Such hardship. Well, not fitting into my jeans is.
So to google it was - and surprisingly Courgette fritters were the answer to my prayers. The web is practically teeming with recipes for them - who knew? Allrecipes was the recipe I chose, and despite not having half the ingredients (more on this presently) they were an indupitable success.
The other thing that's going on for me at the moment, is a shortage of funds. I've been in my new role for a month but am yet to have a full salary, that plus this being the first time ever I've had to work with expenses (or expensives as they're known in our house) and it's meant I'm cutting costs. So, my fridge is currently bare save for some Greek yoghurt, a bottle of cider left over from the Hertfordshire County show, 2 Lush solid perfumes and an eye mask that helps with my migraines. Anyway, this has meant aside from bare essentials I'm trying not to shop.
So here are Penelope's penniless Pantry courgette patties.
4 courgettes, grated (I use the food processor)
2 eggs, beaten
1 red onion, peeled and chopped
8 tablespoons of plain flour
200g mature cheddar grated
Pinch of salt
Teaspoon of chopped red chilli
2 tablespoons of light olive oil
I prepped the courgettes, cheese and onion in the food processor (you could easily chop and grate but it was Friday and I was tired), and tipped them out into a big mixing bowl
Add the eggs, flour, salt and chilli and stir until you get a thick mixture
Heat the oil in a non stick frying pan, when hot, drop heaped tablespoons of mixture into the pan, and leave for about 3 minutes before turning over and cooking on the other side.
As I finished each batch of three, I popped these in the oven on a low heat until we were ready to eat.
We had them with Greek potato salad, sausages and regular salad.
This easily made 12 large fritters, you could use a dessert spoon and probably nearly double this if you wanted more, smaller patties, or make one large fritter that fitted the pan, and slice it up. I had all these ingredients in the house, so this was incredible economical for me. You could follow the original recipe and use a mix of mozzarella and parmesan, and omit the chilli but for me these were tasty and moreish.
Apologies for the lack of picture, the camera has gone a bit strange and a whole load of pictures I took have just vanished. I'm bound to make these again soon and will update when I do. Guides honour.
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