| In a good year proud gardeners present their 'cooks' | | | | batter. If you have made these fritters with ordinary |
| with more fruit and vegetables than they feel they can | | | | batter before, my advice is to try them this way. They |
| cope with.Help is at hand for these beleaguered | | | | are deliciously light and not in the least greasy. I make |
| kitchens. Without them having to resort to wasting an | | | | the batter in the following quantity and if there is some |
| endless amount of time searching through dozens of | | | | left over I put it in the freezer. It keeps well for a week |
| books to find a new way of cooking the produce this | | | | or two. |
| series of receipies provides the answers. . | | | | The Batter |
| COURGETTES WITH DILL SAUCE (ZUCCHINI MIT | | | | 225 g ( 8oz) Plain Flour ½ teaspoon salt 1 egg |
| DILL - Austrian) | | | | separated 1 tablespoon Olive Oil 300ml (10 fl oz) Lager |
| Serves 4 to 6 | | | | 125ml (4.5 fl oz) Cold Water |
| 2 lbs (1 kg) courgettes, peeled, seeded if necessary, | | | | In a large bowl beat all ingredients except the EGG |
| cut into julienne strips. ½ inch (1 cm) x 3 inches (6 | | | | WHITES and frying oil into a smooth fairly thin batter. |
| cm) long ½ teaspoon salt 1oz (25g) butter 2 | | | | Leave aside for approximately 30 minutes. Beat egg |
| tablespoons flour 5 fl ozs(150ml) live yoghurt 1 | | | | whites to a soft peak consistency. After the required |
| teaspoon sugar 2 teaspoons white vinegar 1 teaspoon | | | | amount of time carefully fold in the egg whites to the |
| finely chopped fresh dill or ½ teaspoon dried dill | | | | batter. Do not worry if there are a few small 'lumps' of |
| seeds | | | | egg white remaining. These create a delicious crispy |
| Place the courgettes in a bowl and sprinkle with the | | | | texture to the fritters. |
| salt. Leave for approximately an hour then pat dry with | | | | The Courgettes |
| paper towelling. Melt the butter in a deep frying pan, | | | | Cut off the top and bottom then slice lengthwise from |
| when the foaming subsides add the courgettes. Toss | | | | top to bottom into julienne strips - ½ inch (1 cm) x |
| them until well coated with the butter then cover the | | | | 3 inches (6 cm) long - about the thickness and length |
| pan and simmer on a low heat for about 10 minutes or | | | | of a thin chip. Salt lightly and leave for quarter of an |
| until barely tender. Make sure you do not overcook | | | | hour. Drain and dry carefully before cooking. |
| them. Beat the flour into a little of the yoghurt and then | | | | Finally heat a deep pan of vegetable oil until it is fairly |
| mix into the rest. If using dill seeds add at this stage. | | | | hot. Fry the fritters a few at a time until the batter is |
| Pour the mixture over the courgettes stirring carefully, | | | | medium brown. Drain the fitters well after removing the |
| simmer for 2 or 3 minutes until the sauce thickens. Stir | | | | fritters from the oi and drain again on crumpled kitchen |
| in the sugar, vinegar and dill if using the fresh Taste for | | | | paper before serving.l. |
| seasoning before serving. | | | | Serve this as an accompaniment to the main course |
| Note: The dish is equally nice using either fennel or dill in | | | | or I like it with mayonnaise or a sweet sauce as a |
| tis recipe. | | | | starter. |
| COURGETTE FRITTERS ( BEIGNETE- French with a | | | | STUFFED COURGETTES (ZUCCHINI RIPIENI - Italian) |
| Japanese Type Batter) | | | | Serves between 4 and 6 people as a main course. |
| I like to make these without peeling the courgettes. | | | | INGREDIENTS |
| Wash and dry them and set aside. | | | | A little over ½ pint of good tomato sauce, home |
| First make the batter. I use a Japanese style light | | | | made or from a carton. |