Zucchini Fritters with Herbed Yogurt (Sumac)
A classic seasoning in Middle Eastern and North African cooking, sumac lends a bright, fruity flavor to these zucchini fritters and the accompanying yogurt dipping sauce. The spice, made from the ground berrylike fruits of the sumac bush, has natural hints of tangy citrus and savory salt.
Ingredients
For the herbed yogurt:
- 1 1/2 cups Greek yogurt
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
- Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
- Ground sumac for sprinkling
- Extra-virgin olive oil for drizzling (optional)
For the fritters:
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 eggs
- 2 Tbs. milk
- Finely grated zest and juice of 1 lemon, plus 2 lemons, cut into wedges
- Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
- 1 garlic clove, minced
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh mint
- 1/4 tsp. ground sumac
- 4 Tbs. olive oil
- 4 zucchini, cut into thin ribbons on a mandoline
Directions
To make the yogurt sauce, in a bowl, stir together the yogurt, garlic and mint, and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with sumac and drizzle with olive oil. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.
To make the fritters, in a large bowl, whisk together the flour, eggs, milk, lemon zest and lemon juice. Season lightly with salt and pepper. Add the garlic, parsley, mint and sumac and stir the batter until well combined.
In a 10-inch fry pan over medium-high heat, warm 2 Tbs. of the olive oil. Add the zucchini ribbons to the batter and stir to coat completely. Pull one zucchini ribbon at a time from the batter and fold back and forth on top of itself to make a compact fritter. Add to the pan. Repeat to add more fritters to the pan, spacing them about 1 inch apart. Cook until dark golden brown underneath, about 3 minutes. Turn the fritters over, reduce the heat to medium and cook until dark golden brown on the other side, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a serving plate and keep warm. Repeat to cook the additional fritters using the remaining 2 Tbs. olive oil.
Serve the fritters immediately with the yogurt sauce for dipping and the lemon wedges for squeezing. Serves 4.
Adapted from a recipe by Williams-Sonoma.