Fritters and Furry Friends

Happy Thursday! The weather has been spectacular recently. Blue skies, gusty winds, and warm sunny temperature. I came home after spending the afternoon talking about organ and bone marrow transplants. I was in the mood for a refreshing snack and found a great recipe for zucchini fritters. This seemed so simple and I had all of the ingredients on hand. They are actually very healthy too, just a little bit of cheese and lots of yummy zucchini.  They reminded me a lot of potato latkas but with a yummy green zucchini.

I think zucchini is probably my favorite vegetable and I'm always excited to see new ways to use it. These turned out just great and I was able to make them in under 10 minutes. The original recipe called for mint/parsley. I substituted Penzeys Mural of Flavor spice mix that has a mix of shallots, onion, garlic, thyme, rosemary, basil, coriander, lemon peel, citric acid, black pepper, chives, green peppercorns, dill weed, and orange peel.I think this gave the fritters a great flavor. I also used Japanese panko breadcrumbs. I really do prefer these over regular breadcrumbs. They provide a great crunch and are really light. I served the fritters will a little dollop of tzatzki sauce which was perfect. It provided a cool, refreshing touch to the fritters. 

The recipe cautioned to squeeze the liquid out of the zucchini or else the fritters wouldn't hold together. I completely forgot that step, but the fritters still turned out fine. They were a little difficult to hold together at first, but once you get a nice brown on one side, it's not too terrible. 

While we were making these, Kuma was whining at the front door. I took a peak outside and realized there was a lost dog sitting on our patio. I managed to wrestle her down long enough to get the phone number on her collar. I found out her name was Affinity and her owner was right down the street. She was super excited and kept trying to wiggle her way into the house to play with Kuma. Her owner came and took her home after a few minutes. I've actually never found a lost dog, so this was my first experience with a owner-doggie reunion. I was so happy that we got her back to her owner and I can only hope someone would do the same if Kuma ever managed to break free. 

An exciting afternoon full of delicious food and happy reunions.

Zucchini Fritters

adapted from Giusto Gusto

• 2-3 small Zucchini, grated
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 c. panko breadcrumbs
• 1/2 Tbsp spice blend
• 1/4 c. cheese (I used a a mix of pecorino romano and parmigiano reggiano)
• Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper
• Extra virgin olive oil for frying

Combine all of the ingredients and form into small patties about 1/2″ thick. Fry in a hot pan with 1/4″ of olive oil until golden brown on both sides. Once fried to golden perfection, allow the fritters to drain onto paper towel, this will insure they stay extra crispy and not at all soggy.Serve with a dollop of tzatzki sauce.

Coo Coo for Coconuts

I love coconut. It has to be one of my absolute favorite flavors. Coconut dessert is tops in my book. I'm not sure what about coconut I love so much. It's tropical, sweet, and the aroma is so yummy. I have come to realize you either love or hate coconut, nothing in between. I'm definitely on the LOVE side of the spectrum. I am also in love with coconut water, but only the Taste Nirvana brand. I've tried other brands like VitaCoco and Zico, but they all have a bizarre sour flavor. Taste Nirvana is just a tad sweet and oh so refreshing and crisp.

Every so often they have some cooking demos at CSA. This week, Rachel Yaseen from The Organic Kitchen had some samples of sweet potato patties, braising greens, and a butternut squash crisp. She is a fellow coconut lover and the crisp had a great coconut flavor. It was subtle, but definitely there. I got a butternut squash this week and though it would be great to try out this recipe. Butternut squash has such a distinct flavor that can be translated into both sweet and savory dishes. Surprisingly, this dish does not taste anything like butternut squash. It almost reminds me of peaches or mangoes. You're expecting butternut squash flavor, but you get something very different.

The crisp/crumble topping has a wonderful coconut flavor and it's way healthy too! I had no idea coconut could come in so many different forms, but almost every kind is in this crisp. I got to experiment with coconut flour, coconut palm sugar, coconut oil, and shredded coconut. You'd think this would be coconut overload, but it's actually pretty subtle. Mixed in with the sweet butternut squash, it's a great combo.

The original recipe on the website uses almond flour. Since JC is allergic too all things almond, I substituted coconut flour. I had no idea how this would turn out, I've never worked with the stuff before. I found it while wandering the bulk foods section at Whole Foods trying to find something to substitute for almond flour. I think it turned out pretty well, and it smells so amazing. The recipe also called for agave nectar. I am not a huge fan of the flavor, so I used honey instead. The only spice is cinnamon, but I think it would be great with a bit of nutmeg and cloves to create more of that rich allspice flavor that goes so well with butternut squash.

This dish ended up being nearly all organic and it utilizes some really great low glycemic index foods. It's a great dessert and goes perfect with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Butternut Squash Crisp
adapted from The Organic Kitchen

For the butternut squash:

• 1 butternut squash, peeled, cored, diced into small pieces
• 2 Tbsp honey or agave nectar
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 Tbsp coconut flour

For the crisp topping:

• 3/4 cup coconut flour
• 3/4 cup rolled oats
• 1 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2  tsp salt
• 8 T butter and/ or coconut oil (use less for a less decadent dessert)
• 1 cup coconut palm sugar
• 1/2 cup shredded, unsweetened coconut

For butternut squash mixture, just mix all the ingredients together. Place on a cookie sheet (that has a lip) or in a baking pan, greased. Then mix the topping ingredients together (use cold butter cut into pieces and use your fingers to mix it into the rest of the ingredients). Then sprinkle over the butternut squash. Bake on 375 for 30-40 minutes or until top is slightly brown and crisp. Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

I'm Inspired

I have been pretty lazy about cooking the past couple weeks so I have had a bit of an overload of veggies sitting in the fridge. We have been getting lots of great produce from CSA recently like eggplant, onions, potatoes, turnips, radishes, butternut squash, spaghetti squash and the winter green are starting to trickle in. I am a huge fan of squash, all types, any shape or form. Yellow squash, zucchini, butternut, spaghetti squash, pumpkin, japanese kabocha... everything.

Spaghetti squash is a super versatile veggie. You can substitute it for pasta and toss it with your favorite sauce or make a great casserole dish. A couple weeks ago, I made a Kale and Spaghetti Squash Gratin. It turned out just alright, it could have gone for a bit more cheese and more oomph. I was inspired by a Societies Dinner we had a couple weekends ago. My mentor is also a CSA member and made many CSA veggie dishes. In particular, she made a really great spaghetti squash and green chile dish. It was delish and I knew I had to try to re-create it.

I admit that I am not the best at coming up with my own recipes. I cook by following recipes provided by others and I get really nervous when I have to create something on my own. This dish was all me and it turned out surprisingly well. It has a nice crunch from the squash and onions and also kick from the green chiles. I also used queso fresco which was absolutely perfect. I always want to call this cheese squeaky teeth cheese because when you eat it, it sort of squeaks when you chew on it. It's very mild but so yum.

I'm so proud of this dish, it turned out way better than I had expected--especially since I was not working from a recipe. This dish is super versatile and you could easy throw in any veggies you have on hand. Next time, I might use a different kind of cheese (maybe a gruyere or pecorino romano) and throw in some winter greens. The dish doesn't look that appetizing in the photo, but it's really super good, I promise! I need to work on my food photography skills.

How I cook spaghetti squash: Cut the raw squash in half (this can be difficult, so be careful!!). Put a few tablespoons on water on a plate and place the squash face down on the plate. Cover with saran wrap to create a nice steamy bubble. Place in the microwave for ~10 minutes. Remove saran wrap, be careful because the steam is very hot. Let sit for a few minutes and then scrape out the yummy goodness with a fork. 

Spaghetti Squash and Green Chiles

• 1 spaghetti squash, cooked (see above)
• 5-6 roasted green chiles (more or less to your taste), seeded and chopped
• 10 oz. queso fresco, crumbled
• 1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 egg, beaten
• 1/4 c. milk
• Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix prepared spaghetti squash, green chiles, and queso fresco in a large bowl. Heat the olive oil in a pan and add the garlic and onions. Saute until the onion are soft and the garlic is fragrant. Add onion and garlic mixture to the spaghetti squash mix. Mix in the beaten egg, milk, and season with salt and pepper.

Spray an 8x8 baking dish and pour prepared mixture into dish. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the top is bubbly.