Dandelion Blossom Fritters

I grew up in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, where sagebrush, pine trees and prickly pear cactus flourished.  Needless to say there was little in the way of manicured lawn, what little we did have was generally a sea of dandelions.  My sister and I learned to forage for edible plants at a young age, as our mother was a botanist and our father was a renaissance man of sorts, and dandelions were one of the easiest and, thanks to my parents, tastiest finds.  I have fond memories of fresh dandelion blossoms being batter and fried for an afternoon snack or side dish at dinner.  I recently relocated to Montana, where spring is just beginning and the many of the lawns host their fair share of dandelions and fritters were on my mind.  They are just as easy and delicious as I remember them being, providing a great use for an otherwise common weed.   Dandelion blossom fritters pair well with buckwheat flatbread and rye or wheat berry salad. 

The blossoms should be used immediately and may be rinsed, but are easier to fry dry.

2 c dandelion blossoms, stems removed

1 large egg

¼ c flour

¼ c milk

2 tbsp oil

salt and pepper

1. In a small bowl, whisk the egg, milk and flour together until smooth.  Season the batter with salt and pepper.  Makes about one cup of batter.

2. Place the oil in a medium skill over medium heat.  Once the oil is heated, dip a dandelion blossom in the batter, holding the flower by the bottom to fully submerge the blossom in the batter, gently shake and place in the skillet.  Repeat the process until the skillet is full.  Fry the blossoms until golden brown, flipping as needed, about 1 minute.  Remove the blossoms and set aside drain on a paper towel, while continuing to fry the remaining blossoms. 

3. Season the fritters with salt and pepper as desired.  Serve immediately.

Serves 3-4

Summer Squash Fritters

Young squash, such as zucchini and summer, are a vegetable stand-by for me, and I try to always have them on hand because they are a useful versatile vegetable. I have found they can be added to many different dishes to increase the amount and diversity of vegetables consumed, not to mention texture and flavor. However, they are also lovely on their own, or at least made the central ingredient, with their smooth texture and light taste. Though they are so mild and fresh, they do maintain integrity while cooked, a nice quality in any ingredient. I decided to pair them with fresh herbs and lemon for a spring inspired fritters. Technically a fritter is coated with a batter and then fried, but I decided to combine the vegetables with the batter, creating a cross between a fritter and a pancake of sorts, proving culinary terms and labels can be complicated indeed. These fritters would be delicious paired with a beet salad and roasted potatoes.

Straight summer squash or zucchini will work just as well as the combination.

1 medium zucchini, grated

1 medium summer squash, grated

2 scallions, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, pressed or finely chopped

1 tbsp parsley, finely chopped

1 egg

¼ c parmesan, grated

1 tbsp flour

1 tsp lemon zest

1 tsp salt

¼ tsp black pepper, ground

1 tbsp olive oil

1. Place grated zucchini and summer squash in a colander, sprinkle with salt, toss and drain for about 20 minutes. Wrap the squash in cheese cloth and squeeze to remove excess water. Once squash is mostly dry, wrap in a clean dish towel and set aside.

2. Combine scallions, garlic, lemon zest, pepper, parmesan, flour and egg in a medium mixing bowl. Stir to combine, add squash and thoroughly mix ingredients.

3. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Form batter into 1" balls and flatten into patties, about ½" thick. Fry patties until golden brown, 3-4 minutes per side. Continue process until all batter has been fried.

4. Serve fritters warm, room temperature or cold.

Makes 8 fritters

Rosemary Brown Rice Fritters

Sweet brown rice is one of my favorite kinds of rice because it has pleasing texture, flavor and color. I have found one of the better ways to cook brown rice is to boil it in a pot full of water until almost done, drain it, return it to the pot, cover it and allow it to finish cooking on its own. The boiling method takes the same if not less time and results in a perfectly cooked grain every time. I found inspiration for these fritters while reading an article in Saveur magazine on brown rice grown in California. Rice fritters are delicious with mustard green soup and beer stewed pork.

Other herbs may be substituted for either parsley or rosemary. A mechanical ice cream scoop works the best because it helps the rice mixture compact and hold together.

2 c cooked sweet brown rice

½ c parmesan, grated

¼ c flour plus more for coating fritters

¼ c parsley, finely chopped

1 tbsp rosemary, finely chopped

1 egg

2 tbsp olive oil

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp pepper

1. Thoroughly combine rice, flour, parmesan, parsley, rosemary, salt and pepper in a medium mixing bowl. Place 2 tbsp flour on a plate for coating rice patties. Form rice mixture into 1" fritters using two spoons or a mechanical ice cream scoop. Coat both sides of fritters with flour and place on parchment or wax paper lined baking sheet.

2. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Gently transfer fritters to skillet with spatula. Brown fritters on each side, 3-4 minutes, adding olive oil to skillet as necessary. Once both sides have browned, remove fritters from heat.

3. Serve fritters warm or room temperature.

Serves 3-4