Cheese Fritters with Lemon Pesto

Directions

1. Cheese fritters with pesto
2. Season the flour with salt and pepper. Mix well and set in a wide plate. Dip each piece of cheese in the seasoned flour, on both sides.
3. Follow by placing floured cheese rounds in the egg, turning over so both sides are dipped then finish off by crumbing in the panko.
4. Set a pan on medium heat. Once hot, add a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and gently heat then place the breaded cheese rounds, being careful not to overcrowd the pan.
5. Let each side fry for 1-2 minutes till golden. Flip over and repeat on the other side.
6. Remove and serve immediately with lemon pesto and extra strips of lemon zest

1. Lemon Pesto
2. Put the basil leaves and garlic clove in a mortar and pound well till leaves are soft and bruised and garlic is crushed.
3. Add the almonds to the mortar and with a circular motion of the pestle, crush them….. to bits.
4. Using a spoon, add a tablespoon of the Parmesan and then loosen with some of the oil. Add more Parmesan, follow this with more oil, till you have the consistency you like. I like mine fairly loose so I tend to add more oil. When you have the consistency you like, add the lemon zest and a squeeze of lemon juice then salt to taste. Stir well and set aside.
5. (If using a food processor, you’ll need to drizzle the oil in and that’s one area you have to watch out for if you’re using extra virgin olive oil as it contains bitter tasting polyphenols coated by fatty acids, which prevent them from dispersing. If the oil is emulsified in a food processor, these polyphenols get squeezed out and the liquid mix turns bitter ( as read here: http://www.deliciousdays.com/archives/2009/03/06/pesto-looks-all-too-familiar-wait/).