Fritters remind me of Hanukkah, a festival that is usually celebrated around the same time as Christmas. Traditionally, people will light candles for eight days and eat donuts as well as latkes, which are basically potato fritters. I always preferred the savory fritters to the sweet donuts, especially my mom’s fritters, as she added sweet potatoes to the mix, giving them a unique, delicate flavor. Inspired by her recipe, I find that these courgette/zucchini, carrot and feta fritters are always a crowd-pleaser and feel even more special when paired with the yogurt and mint dip.
One tip when cooking: Be careful not to burn the outside of the fritters before they are fully cooked inside. This means making sure the oil is hot enough so that they sizzle when placed in the pan, but not so hot that they reach smoking point (at this point, you shouldn’t use the oil any more). I find rapeseed/canola oil works best.
From “My Tel Aviv Table” by Limor Chen (2023). Reprinted with permission by Nourish, an imprint of Watkins Media Limited.
Zucchini, Carrot and Feta Fritters Recipe
These fritters are always a crowd-pleaser and feel even more special when paired with the yogurt and mint dip.
- Total Time: 40 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4-6
Ingredients
- 2 zucchini, peeled and coarsely grated
- 2 carrots, peeled and coarsely grated
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 eggs
- zest of ½ lemon (optional)
- 3 Tbsp gluten-free plain/all-purpose flour (or any flour of your choice)
- 100 g/3 ½ oz feta cheese, crumbled
- 50 ml/2fl oz/¼ cup rapeseed/canola oil or any vegetable oil you prefer
For the dip:
- 100 g/3 ½ oz/generous ½ cup plain yogurt
- leaves from 2 mint sprigs, washed and finely chopped
Instructions
- Place the grated vegetables in a sieve/fine-mesh strainer over a large bowl and mix with the salt. Leave for 10-15 minutes. Squeeze out and discard the excess liquid.
- In a large bowl, mix the grated vegetables with the eggs and lemon zest, if using. Add the flour and feta cheese and mix well.
- Put a large frying pan on a medium heat, pour in about a third of the oil and heat. Carefully add a tablespoon of the vegetable batter, sliding it into the hot oil; it should sizzle when it hits the oil. Flatten it out slightly. Add a few more to fill the pan. When each becomes golden brown underneath, flip it over.
- Prepare a large plate with paper towels next to the pan. When both sides of the fritters are lovely and golden, take them out and place on the lined plate to allow the excess oil to be absorbed. Continue in the same way, adding oil to the pan and working your way through the batter.
- To make the dip, spoon the yogurt into a bowl. Add the mint and mix well.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Appetizer
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Holiday
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Hello! 🙂 These look so great! I’m wondering if you would know of a good egg substitute? I’m very sensitive to eggs, sadly, so I’m wondering if you might know if flaxseed or chia could work in these?
Thank you! Happy Hanukkah (coming up)!
Sincerely,
Erin T.
We have another vegan latke recipe on the side that calls for vegan mayo as a substitute binder; if you are comfortable using flax egg, you can also try that. Let us know if you try it!
hi, Can I bake these in the oven instead of frying them?
We haven’t tried it this way, but you can try. I would suggest looking at other baked latke recipes to provide guidance.
I want to make this recipe but when I see 1 zucchini — they come in all sizes — the same with carrots …. Can’t you put in MEASUREMENTS — ounces, grams, etc. as they do in Europe?
I would suggest trying a medium-sized zucchini.
Hi Erin…..JUST Egg is a plant based egg substitute readily available in most supermarkets!
In baking you can use apple sauce to replace an egg.
Following this recipe exactly resulted in things that wouldn’t hold together. After adding another egg and 1 cup Bisquick, they look like fritters. Also, the pan needs to be medium high, in my opinion. Flavor combo is tasty, though