I have a new kitchen toy. It’s called a Veggetti and turns vegetables into long noodle-like strands. It’s fast and easy to use with minimal clean up. I like it so, yes, you can expect a few more recipes from me in the near future utilizing this gadget.
I have never deep fried anything before. The thought of all that oil in my food – and the house smelling like grease – was enough to keep me away. When I was in law school, a roommate brought her (well-used) deep fryer from home. I was kind of shocked, as I thought my generation was moving away from that style of cooking. I was even more appalled to learn that once you dumped a container of cooking oil in it, you didn’t throw it out, but rather kept using it over and over. Then to top that, she stored it in our pantry so every time I opened the door, I was hit in the face with the overwhelming smell of Crisco.
I was quite disgusted with this apparatus until she actually started cooking with it – and I liked her creations. To assuage my guilt, I convinced myself I was young enough that my arteries would recover once we parted ways.
I was in a restaurant recently and someone near me ordered fritters. I don’t know what kind they were, but they smelled heavenly. Even though I’m not into cooking with a lot of oil, I decided to make an exception and give these a try. Much to my surprise, I was able to make these fritters without deep frying and without using any more oil than what’s needed for making pancakes. Note: if you have a door to close off your kitchen from the rest of the house and a strong exhaust fan, use them. Even though these smell great while they’re cooking, the residual oil fumes the next day aren’t nearly as pleasant.
This recipe makes 4 to 6 fritters and serves two people. I thought my husband would be out of luck as I couldn’t see how these would last until he gets back in town. But these little buggers are quite the gut bombs, so against my desire to snarf all of them down like a hungry wolf, I’ll (try to) be nice and save him a few.
Ingredients
2 medium zucchinis – grated or made into Veggetti noodles (cut noodles into 6-inch lengths)
½ c. grated parmesan cheese
1 medium scallion – finely chopped (about 1/3 cup)
2 garlic cloves – finely chopped (about 1 tbsp.)
½ tsp. salt
½ c. almond flour (or all-purpose flour if you don’t mind gluten)
¼ c. unsweetened almond milk (or dairy milk)
3 – 4 tbsp. cooking oil (I used canola)
Directions
- Place grated (or Veggetti noodle) zucchini in mixing bowl. Sprinkle flour and salt on top and mix well with hands to ensure zucchini is coated with flour. Set aside and let rest about 10 minutes. This helps absorb moisture from the zucchini.
- Grate the cheese, chop the scallion and garlic.
- Add cheese, scallion, garlic and milk to the zucchini and mix until well coated. I prefer to mix with my hands so I can feel what’s going on. You do not want there to be too much liquid or it will splatter when cooking.
- In a non-stick skillet, heat about 3-4 tbsp. of oil.
- Using a ¼ cup measuring scoop, pack it full with mixture and carefully place in pan. Use back of measuring cup to pat the mound down a bit so it’s flattened like a pancake. Depending on pan size, cook 2-3 at a time. Hint: Consider using a splatter shield!
- With heat on medium to medium-low, cook 3-4 minutes on each side until golden brown.
- Remove from skillet and drain on paper towel a couple of minutes.
- Serve hot immediately.
cheri says
Hi Amy, that’s so funny because tonight I am making cauliflower fritters. I just love zucchini. Yours look really good, I can just see myself crunching down on these.
Amy says
There must be something in the air because I’m seeing fritters everywhere. What’s not to like? Would love to see your cauliflower fritters on your blog!
Betty says
Just bought one, hoping to use it,just been diagnosed with type 2 diabetis so looking for low calorie recipes,just found your blog,so thank you.
Amy says
I hope you like the Veggetti, Betty. I use it a lot to make a quick lunch/dinner of zucchini noodles, mushrooms and tomato sauce.