Author Notes
In the summer, when zucchini are everywhere, this is a nice way to dispatch some. In the winter, when they have to jet in from elsewhere, this means you will not mind if the zucchini are not bursting with summer sunlight. It’s the mint that elevates the goings-on here, makes your mouth happy and wakes up senses that may have been hibernating a bit, so don’t skip that if you can help it. These are more savory and satisfying than the otherwise simple ingredients might have you think. One of my housemates is a confirmed Zucchini Hater, but gobbles these right up. It's the pancake factor, I think. These are adapted from Mollie Katzen's Moosewood recipe; there's fewer eggs, I replaced the flour with cornmeal, the dried mint with fresh, and punched up the heat a little. —a raisin + a porpoise
Ingredients
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3
eggs
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4 cups
coarsely grated zucchini
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1 cup
crumbled feta cheese (about 4 ozs)
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2 tablespoons
minced fresh chives or scallions
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1 tablespoon
minced fresh mint
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1 pinch
fresh black pepper
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1/4 teaspoon
cayenne
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1/3 cup
cornmeal
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about 1/4 cups
olive oil
Directions
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Lightly beat the eggs in a medium to large bowl.
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Add remaining ingredients (except olive oil), and stir well to combine. Depending on the saltiness of your feta, you may also want to add a pinch of salt.
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The mixture will be mostly zucchini, bound by a little batter. The longer this mixture sits, the more water will be extracted from the zucchini by the salt in the feta, so it's best for the texture to cook them right up; if you need to do some advance work to make these possible, just prep all the bits ahead of time and then combine them right before you cook.
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Heat a medium heavy skillet and add enough oil to amply coat the bottom of it; let the oil get hot enough to race around the pan.
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Drop the batter in by 1/3 cupfuls and turn the heat down to low-medium; fry the pancakes until they are a nice golden brown and flip to repeat.
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Take some time to let them brown slowly and well and they will not be hard to flip. Add more oil as needed to cook the remaining pancakes. These can be kept warm in a 250 degree oven as you go, or eaten at room temperature, and leftovers ride happily in someone's lunch the next day.
I write about cooking for, eating with, and loving my family (when I can stay awake long enough to string four coherent words together) at A Raisin + A Porpoise.
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