The Newlywed Kitchen - Book Review with a Recipe for Zucchini Fritters

Zucchini fritters from The Newlywed Kitchen

I love a cookbook that has a unique point of view, and Lorna Yee and Ali Basye's Newlywed Kitchen: Delicious Meals for Couples Cooking Together has that in spades. They have created a beautiful, charming book for couples just starting out in marriage to explore cooking together.  You'd be crazy not to give it as a shower gift to every couple you know who is getting married this summer.

Along with the recipes are endearing stories from a wide range of culinary professionals about their experiences cooking with their beloved in the first years of marriage. I love Chef Ethan Stowell's story of how he came to throw the soup his wife Angela requested for their wedding over a cliff!

When I first flipped through the book, I was immediately attracted to this recipe for zucchini fritters. I'm pretty much a sucker for any sort of little crispy pan-fried fritter, and I could tell this one was gonna be good. Lorna was happy to share it with our readers, so it is reprinted below. Serve them fresh out of the frying pan for maximum crispy goodness.

Zucchini Fritters with Tangy Yogurt Sauce
Vegetarian
Makes 10 Fritters

For the sauce:

• 3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
• Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper

1. Whisk together the yogurt, lemon juice and parsley. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

For the fritters:

• 3 cups grated zucchini
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
• 1/2 cup flour
• 3 tablespoons extra-vigin olive oil

1. Combine the zucchini and salt in a sieve over a large bowl and squeeze the water out with your hands. (You should be able to remove about 1/2 cup of water.)
2. Transfer the zucchini to a large bowl and add the garlic, egg, peppers, Parmesan, and flour. Stir to combine.
3. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Spoon heaping tablespoons of the zucchini batter into the pan, making sure the fritters don't touch one another. Brown the fritters for about 3 minutes, lifting the edge to check on the color. When the fritters are golden brown, flip and cook for another 2 to 3 minutes.

Bocoles (Masa and Black Bean Cakes) with Spicy Yams - Recipe

 
Bocoles (Masa and Black Bean Cakes) with Spicy Yams

Bocoloes are little pan-fried cake of masa and mashed black beans, typically served as an antojito (appetizer). I learned about them from Diana Kennedy's magnificient My Mexico and thought that I could replace the pork filling with yams, increase the portion, and make an unusual and delicious vegetarian entree.

The cakes came out great; they fry up with a crispy exterior and somewhat creamy inside. If you have had an Indian dosa, which is made from a lentil batter, the crust is kind of like that. Both of my kids loved them too, which was a nice bonus. The older one now calls them "yummy cakes" and is lobbying for a repeat performance.

I served the bocoles with this refreshing jicama, radish and orange salad, and a spoonful of homemade pipian, a type of mole made with pumpkin seeds (pepitas).

Fresh masa is a delight to work with, much nicer than dough made from dry masa harina. Your best bet for finding it is to locate a place that makes fresh corn tortillas (a tortilleria). That should be easy in parts of the country that have large Mexican populations. In Seattle I've had luck at La Bendicion on Beacon Hill, if I ask a day in advance, or I hear you can get it at the The Mexican Grocery in Pike Place. If you don't have fresh masa, just buy masa harina flour and mix it according to the package directions for tortillas.

I also bought pre-made Ducal-brand refried black beans. If you don't have that, simply fry some onion and garlic with canned black beans and then thoroughly puree them with enough liquid to make a smooth paste.

Bocoles (Masa and Black Bean Cakes) with Spicy Yams
Serves 6 as an entree or 12 as an appetizer
Vegetarian, vegan if you omit the crema, and gluten-free

For the yam filling:

• 2 tablespoons oil
• 1 white onion, diced
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 medium yams, peeled and finely diced (see below)
• 2 or more jalapeno peppers, minced
• 1 teaspoon cumin powder
• salt

For the bocoles:

• 2 pounds (about 4 cups) masa or prepared masa harina, no wetter than necessary
• 2 cups refried black beans (Ducal brand is good or make your own)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• salt
• oil for pan frying

For serving:

• shredded romaine lettuce hearts
• crema or sour cream
• salsa or jicama salad
• optional: mole or pipian sauce

1. The easiest way to cut the yams is to make strips using a mandoline and then use a knife to cut the strips into very small cubes. Heat the oil in a large skillet over a medium flame. Saute the onion and garlic for 1 minute. Add the yams, jalapeno and cumin and 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Cook, stirring occasionally until the yams are fully tender. Taste and adjust seasoning - they will likely need more salt. Feel free to make the filling spicier if that suits you.
2. Thoroughly mix the masa, refried beans, baking powder and 1 teaspoon salt. Taste and add more salt if needed. Heat 1/8" of oil in a large skillet over a medium flame. Make golf-ball sized balls of the dough and pat them between your hands into a pancake about 1/4" thick or so. Fry for about 3 or 4 minutes until brown on the outside and cooked but still soft on the inside. Diana Kennedy says 7 minutes per side but I found it didn't it take that long; try a tester and see what you like best.
3. Serve as soon as possible, on a bed of shredded lettuce, topped with a generous amount of the yam filling, and garnished with crema. Pass the salad or salsa and optional mole on the side.

The Adaptable Feast - Cookbook Review and a Chance to Win a Copy

I "met" Ivy Manning when my wife gave me her terrific first cookbook. Since then, we've become frequent visitors to each other's blogs, and we keep up on Twitter as well. (Come follow me or Ivy, we'd love to hear from you).

We've discovered that although she's an omnivore and I'm a vegetarian, our taste in food has a lot in common. Both of us love fresh, seasonal produce, preferably from local farms. And we both make dishes from all over the world, but tend to prefer fairly authentic approaches, not wild substitutions for simplicity or garish flavor combinations.

Naturally I've been awaiting Ivy's next book, and now it is here. As far as I know, The Adaptable Feast is the first book to directly address the problem of making great meals for families that have a mix of omnivores and vegetarians or vegans. The idea was born from her own personal need; Ivy's husband is a committed vegetarian.

I think many families find themselves in this situation. Whether it is the cliche of a college student coming home for winter break having freshly gone veg, or a traditional Thanksgiving with a few of us herbivores mixed in, many cooks who prepare meat need ways to offer a meatless option.

Ivy has completely thought through each of these recipes and worked out a system for how to make one main preparation, segregate and finish a vegetarian portion and then complete the omnivorous recipe. Both groups will find that they have a delicious, flavorful, satisfying dish. You might just find the meat eaters begging for access to the vegetarian half!

I've already made one recipe from the book, for a Malaysian-style red curry paste, and it was superb. I'll be posting a dish based on it in the next few days.

Sasquatch Books has offered a free copy of The Adaptable Feast to one lucky Herbivoracious reader. All you have to do is make a comment below. Tell us your favorite cookbook, and why it is your favorite. Next Wednesday I'll pick a winner at random from all of the comments and arrange to send them the book. To enter you must leave a comment; sending me a tweet, reply on StumbleUpon etc. won't count.

Update 10/4/09: And the winner is commenter #7, Heather, who's favorite cookbook is Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian. Thanks everyone for entering! And if you didn't win, I highly recommend purchasing Ivy's book - here's the link: