To be honest, I wasn’t expecting much from zucchini fritters. I don’t particularly like zucchini by itself and I had never tried making anything like this before. But after prepping the batter and lightly pan frying them until golden and crispy, I took a bite and… wow. I was shocked. These guys are so amazingly fresh, crispy, and delicious.

But fritters are fried! That must mean they are super unhealthy, right? Yes, your average fritters are usually fried (deep fried!) and contain way too much fat. But wanna hear a secret? You can pan fry these fritters in very minimal olive oil, like 1/2 tablespoon each, and the texture comes out just perfect. This dish is low fat, high in veggies and nutrients, but so delicious no one would ever guess it’s healthy.

Oh, I was so excited about the fritters I almost forgot to mention the tomato sauce! Sure, you can eat them dry, but drizzling a beautiful tomato sauce with basil and olives takes these fritters to a whole new level.

Makes 6 fritters

Ingredients: 3 cups grated zucchini

2/3 cup whole wheat flour

2 green onions

1 tablespoon dried oregano

Sea salt & black pepper

1 tablespoon lemon juice

3 tablespoons olive oil 1 16 oz can of tomato sauce

10 Kalamata olives

1/4 cup capers

Handful of basil leaves

Sea salt & black pepper

Step One

Grate two large zucchini until you have about 3 cups. If you have a food processor with grating attachment, it makes this job so, so much easier while also creating the perfectly-sized shreds for making fritters.

Step Two

Start the tomato sauce. These fritters can be eaten by themselves, but a simple tomato sauce adds a lot. To make, simply combine all ingredients from the second list (tomato sauce, olives, capers, basil, and salt & pepper) into a saucepan and let it simmer for 15+ minutes while you’re preparing the fritters.

Step Three

Prepare the fritters by mixing the zucchini shreds with the flour, sliced green onions, oregano, salt & pepper, and lemon juice. Use your hands to toss everything together in a mixing bowl. Test the consistency by trying to form into a ball, about 1/2 the size of a baseball. If they hold together nicely, the batter is perfect. If they’re too watery, add more flour; too dry, add a few tablespoons of water.

Step Four

Heat a skillet with enough olive oil to cover the bottom of the pan over fairly high heat. While the oil is heating, roll the fritters into balls and flatten to about 2/3 inch thick.

Carefully add 3 fritters into the pan and let them cook until thoroughly browned on that side (about 4 minutes). Then, flip and allow the other side to brown as well.

Step Five

Remove from the heat and allow the skillet to cool before pouring in a layer of the now-cooked tomato sauce to cover the bottom half of the fritters. To serve, plate 1-2 fritters with a drizzle of the tomato sauce.