Courgette and Feta Fritters

Another courgette recipe; you can tell they’re doing well in the garden this year! That's one of the things I love about ‘growing-your-own’ –  when everything starts to come to fruition at once you have to find ways of using it. Good job we love ‘em!

If you have as many courgettes as me you can freeze them; just chop them into largish chunks and pack into a Tupperware box before freezing. They’ll collapse somewhat when they’re defrosted, so I wouldn’t attempt making these fritters with them, but they’ll be perfectly OK for either of the soups I’ve posted recently.

I like fritters, they’re great hot and fresh with some new potatoes or wedges and a salad, but if you have a couple left over I can recommend them for lunch next day in a soft flour tortilla with a dollop of sour cream and some leafage with a few olives on the side. Delish!

400gm Courgettes
1 heaped tbsp plain flour
2 eggs, beaten
1tbsp finely chopped fresh herbs (thyme and chives are nice)
Grated zest of one lemon
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 shallot, peeled and finely chopped
100gms feta, crumbled into small pieces
2tbsps olive oil for frying

Grate the courgettes, salt lightly and leave to drain in a colander for 15 min. Meanwhile put the flour, eggs, shallot, herbs, garlic and lemon zest in a bowl and mix. Place the salted courgettes in the middle of a clean tea-towel then wring out the tea-towel** over the sink until the courgettes are almost dry. Add them to the bowl with the feta and mix well.

Heat the oil in a large frying pan and add a tablespoon of mixture for each fritter, flatten it out a bit and cook until the underside is golden, then turn and cook the other side. Put on a paper-towel lined plate while you cook the rest of the mixture.

Serve with new potatoes and a salad.

**Your tea-towel will look a bit wrecked, but it’ll be fine after a hot wash!