Monday 23rd August 2021 - Where Next? and Courgette Fritters

Although there was a great sense of relief when the application, to put a 5g mast on the corner of Cromer Road with Pauls Lane, was refused by North Norfolk District Council’s planning department, there is now a feeling of – where next? Most people are of the opinion that Overstrand cannot become a backwater and we will at some time have a 5g mast, preferably one which will cover all four providers. However, the question yet to be answered is, where? I think we all need to be vigilant in case, as with the application which was refused, a provider tries to sneak in and ignore some of the formal procedures.

Summer months usually bring forth a glut of courgettes. Not so for us this year but we have still had enough to make into my Greek recipe for courgette fritters; some to eat immediately and the rest for the freezer. Some varieties of courgettes can be very watery but the type we grow are ridged and are firmer and drier. Even so I leave the grated flesh on kitchen paper for a few hours and then squeeze out any excess moisture before making into fritters. There are a number of recipes for courgette fritters using feta cheese, which to my mind is too moist, others use flour instead of breadcrumbs and so the variations go on. I thought I would share my recipe with you, along with a photo of one of our courgettes, complete with flower, growing on Peter’s vegetable plot.

Courgette Fritters

Courgettes - 400g, grated.

Salt

White breadcrumbs - 40g

Dill - 1 tbsp, fresh, chopped

Parmesan, Pecorino or Manchego cheese - 50g grated

Ground black pepper

Egg - 1, beaten

Olive oil – preferably Greek

• Lay the grated courgettes on kitchen paper and sprinkle salt over.

• Leave for a couple of hours and then blot and dry the courgettes thoroughly with more kitchen paper, before squeezing out any excess moisture.

• Mix together the courgettes with the breadcrumbs, dill, cheese and pepper. Add the egg and mix again.

• Heat some olive oil in a frying pan and take spoonfuls of the courgette mix and shallow fry. Don’t mould the fritters, leave them rough, this way you will have lovely crunchy edges.

• Fry the fritters in batches for just a few minutes each side.

• Drain on kitchen paper and serve warm.

Notes: Frozen fritters should be defrosted and then reheated in a fairly hot oven on a baking tray for about ten minutes. You will lose out on the crunchy edges, of freshly fried fritters, but they still taste good.

Time for a break from blogging, so this is my last for August but I will be back early September. In the meantime, if anything of interest comes up, I will post this on Overstrand Life’s Facebook page.