Zucchini Feta Fritters with Tzatziki

When the kids are craving for pasta pesto with broccoli and the somewhat bigger kid  announces he will only eat low-carb for dinner from now on, what does one do? Well, one makes the pasta (10 minutes, remember?), then takes a look at the fridge and comes up with a new, rather quick Greece-inspired recipe!

So I’m proud to present these delicious and fluffy fritters with zucchini, feta, and dill, served with a generous helping of tzatziki. This recipe is not as quick as some others: it took me 20 minutes to make this dish, mainly because I could only fit three fritters easily in my pan at the same time. So, if in a hurry, use two pans!

This recipe is for two people, especially if served with a slice or two of good bread. If you - like me - are not afraid of carbs, that is!

For the fritters:

• 140g zucchini, grated


• 75g feta


• 2 eggs


• 1 Tbsp pine nuts


• 2 Tbsp fresh dill, chopped


• salt and black pepper to taste

For the tzatziki:

• 10cm piece of cucumber


• 4 heaped Tbsp natural yoghurt


• 1 small garlic clove (or to taste)


• 1 Tbsp olive oil


• salt and black pepper to taste

First, make the tzatziki: grate the cucumber very fine and drain in a sieve to get the excess water out. Then combine in a bowl with yoghurt, crushed garlic, olive oil, salt, and pepper. Stir, cover, and place in the fridge for the time you make the fritters.

Now, it’s time to make the fritters. First, crush the feta with a fork. Then place all ingredients in a bowl, stir until well combined, and fry the fritters in a large pan with a little bit of oil over a medium heat. This amount of batter results in 6 smallish fritters. It was a bit challenging to fry them – in the beginning, the batter tends to spread a lot, which you need to stop by moving the runaway batter back with a spatula. But after that, it’s easy! Once they’re done from one side (about 4 minutes or so), turn them and fry until both sides are golden brown.

Serve the fritters with tzatziki, sliced fresh vegetables - and maybe some good bread!

 

Warm Zucchini and Tomato Salad, Greek Style

This dish is perfect for a summer lunch or dinner. Serve with a slice of good bread and a glass of white wine, followed by a bowl of strawberries... What else could one ask for? Oh yes, for it to cook fast. And it does: I counted exactly twelve minutes from the time I entered my kitchen to the moment I started eating!

For two people you need:

• 400g zucchini


• 300g cherry tomatoes


• 120g onion


• 2 garlic cloves


• ½ tsp dried oregano


• a handful of fresh parsley (or other herbs available)


• 150g feta cheese


• olive oil, salt, and black pepper to taste

This is how to make it:

1. Chop onion and garlic, and cut zucchini into cubes. Halve the tomatoes.

2. Heat a generous splash of olive oil in a large pan. Add onion and sauté 2 minutes, then add garlic and the zucchini cubes, and sauté over a medium heat until zucchini starts to gain some colour.

3. Now, add the tomatoes, salt, and pepper, and keep heating over a medium heat until the juices of the tomatoes start to flow. Let simmer a couple of minutes.

4. Take away from heat, add feta cubes and parsley. Sprinkle with some extra olive oil, salt, and pepper and serve right away! A slice of bread is obligatory to wipe that great sauce off the plate.

For a vegan version, replace the feta cheese with tofu – I would use Tofu Olive from Taifun.

 

Oven-baked Zucchini and Potatoes

Has it ever happened to you that you spend time and effort to prepare a dish you love, but when you proudly bring it to the table, the little ones suddenly lose their appetite - or worse, start crying in despair? Well, this happens to me a lot. Especially when it comes to vegetarian food. But it used to be worse - I came up with a couple of strategies to fool them into eating at least some of the things they officially hate. Four strategies, to be precise (well, five, if you count bribing): Hide it. Puree it. Decorate it. Or make the kids cook it themselves. (The two first ones work for adults as well ;) )

Today, I’ll share with you a recipe containing zucchini, the number one enemy of my kids. But surprisingly enough, when they get to slice the vegetables for this dish themselves, they somehow forget to complain about it. A small miracle..

For four portions, you need

• 600g potatoes


• 2 medium-sized zucchini


• ½ red pepper


• 500g fresh tomatoes, peeled


• 1 onion


• 3 garlic cloves


• 50ml hot water


• 1 tsp salt


• black pepper to taste


• 50ml olive oil


• fresh parsley


• dried oregano

Set your oven to 225 degrees Celsius. Slice (unpeeled) potatoes and zucchini into thin slices. Set them in an oven-proof baking dish. Chop onion, red pepper, and garlic and sprinkle over the potatoes and zucchini. Cut tomatoes into cubes and place on top, and add pepper and herbs (if using). Combine salt with hot water so that it dissolves, then add oil, and pour evenly on the vegetables. Bake in the oven for 20-30 minutes, then reduce heat to 175 degrees, and bake 30 minutes more, or until the vegetables are tender. You may have to add some water in the meantime - check every once in a while!

Even small kids can do most of the slicing and chopping, and it’s fun! Except for the onion - that might be a bit trickier.

P.S. This blog already proved its usefulness: while I was having fun in Zurich, my hubby and 8-year-old son had done sushi themselves - they had looked up the recipe in my blog!