Let me say right off the bat that these fritters have no chicken broth in the recipe…however these Fritters are SOOOO tasty that I wanted to include them as a side dish anyway! My family of NON zucchini enthusiasts devoured these very fritters quickly.
Plus, everyone I know with a garden always needs new ideas for what to do with zucchini (am I right or what?!) You can only eat so much zucchini bread.
This is a Mario Batali recipe that I adapted. He is one of our very favorite chef’s, so I’m excited to be showcasing his recipe here. If you are a fan of fresh ingredients and Italian cuisine, you should check out his his many wonderful restaurants.
Table of Contents
Zucchini Ricotta Fritters Recipe
A tasty way to use zucchini is to make zucchini ricotta fritters, which are excellent as an appetizer, snack, or vegetarian main dish. They have an extremely crisp exterior and a creamy, luscious interior.
Ingredients
- 14 oz Shredded zucchini (about 2 medium-sized veggies)
- 3 garlic cloves thinly sliced (original recipe said 2)
- 3 large scallions thinly sliced – I used chives from my garden
- 3/4 cup fresh ricotta cheese (originally called for 1/2 but I needed more to add thickness)
- 2 large eggs
- 2 tsp finely grated lemon zest (don’t skip this ingredient!)
- to taste kosher salt (or substitute truffled salt or lemon salt – YUM!)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour + some to thicken the batter
- for frying olive oil
- to serve with lemon wedges
- for garnish parsley
Instructions
- First of all, use your Cuisinart to grate the zucchini – it takes 2 minutes and saves a lot of time.
- Mix zucchini, garlic, scallions, ricotta, eggs, and lemon zest in a large boat and season with 1 tsp of salt and pepper. Mix well and stir in flour. Do not over-stir (or it gets moister.) Consistency should be like wet cookie dough.
- Line a plate or baking sheet with paper towels to drain the fat once fried.
- Heat 1/4 inch of olive oil in a large skillet until shimmering. Spoon 2 or 3 2tablespoon mounds of batter into the oil and spread them out with your spatula into round disks. Wait until the bottom is lightly browned and the disks are cohesive then flip them over gently. Remove when browned and crisp on both sides and place them on the paper towel-covered tray to drain.
