as a jew, i know how to fry

subtitle: happy hannukah! i mean, chinese new year

subtitle II: i told you i was behind on my posts

the moment my dad realized i had surpassed a good deal of his cooking knowledge took place one hannukah, a couple of years ago. to be fair, the man taught me a great deal of what i know re: food. that is until i took an uncanny liking to watching the food network. then there were the food memoirs. and spending all of my cash eating out...

we were discussing one of the Great Debates: latke making. in fact, i'm pretty sure we have the exact same conversation every year. but let's pretend that the first one took place about five years ago, when i took on the task for the first time. the conversation probably included the issue of hand grating potatoes and how to keep them from oxidizing once they're shredded (place in cold water, then squeeze out when you're ready to use). more recent conversations included frying oils. my dad was shocked when i explained that the reason you had to fry in canola oil was because the smoke point was higher than that of olive oil.

this year i wanted to do something a little different. so i made a combination of potato and sweet potato latkes. and i threw in some chopped parsley for good measure. okay, so these weren't leaps and bounds, but a slight variation made me confident we'd still have something good to eat and i'd simultaneously get the satisfaction of trying something a wee bit different.

the lesson here is that you can use a variety of different vegetables to fry up something delicious. latke, fritter, call it what you will. squash, root vegetable, pome, it's all going to taste delicious. a few general guidelines:

• grate your ingredients. you want everything to be the same size/shred.
  
• use an oil with a high smoke point! (canola, peanut, safflower, or sunflower will work)
  
• don't skimp on the oil. not only do you need to entirely cover the bottom of the pan but the oil should make its way up the sides a bit.
  
• make sure to heat your oil before frying, or you'll end up with a greasy mess.
  
• dry/drain food as much as possible before frying.
  
• don't crowd the pan!
  

happy frying!

fried green tomatoes with garlic scape pesto

i couldn't walk by green tomatoes at the market without taking them home. and of course, the first thing i think of when i see them is fried green tomatoes! hence the necessary call to friend number 2 to consult about how a real southern would handle them. and then i threw all of her instructions out the window. dredge and then batter. buttermilk. bacon grease. nah, maybe not, and nope. i went with the approach that if you fry anything in cornmeal, it will automatically taste good. and i think i did just fine. granted, my version used a little sprinkling of spelt flour (any sort of flour would have done), a dip in egg (i was so excited that i forgot about the milk), and a pressing into a seasoned bowl of cornmeal. then i fried in olive oil until they were golden brown on both sides and served with garlic scape pesto.

garlic scape "pesto"

• garlic scapes
  
• olive oil
• parmesean cheese
• pine nuts, almonds, or walnuts (optional)
  

• this is one of those taste as you go and adjust things...i started with 3 garlic scapes, a generous drizzle of olive oil and about a tablespoon of parm. then blend, chop, or scrape together until somewhat combined. you may need to add additional oil to make the pesto smoother. add salt and pepper and taste again.
  

fried green tomatoes (non-southern style)

• green tomatoes, sliced about 1/2 inch thick
• flour (optional; use spelt or a gluten-free blend)
• cornmeal
• egg
• milk (optional)

• sprinkle tomatoes with a little flour
• dip in egg bath (just eggs or eggs and milk) then coat with cornmeal
• heat oil in skillet over medium high heat. once the oil is hot, fry on both sides until golden brown
• top with pesto
  

cornmeal pickle fritters

i don't really think i need to say anything else besides this: pickle fritters. just go freaking make them now. they only lasted 5 minutes when i showed up with them at a bbq.


cornmeal pickle fritters
adapted from epicurious

• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 cup milk
• 1 1/3 cups yellow cornmeal (preferably stone-ground)
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• a bunch of chopped pickles (a bunch is the technical term)
  
• vegetable oil for frying
  

• whisk together the egg, milk, cornmeal, baking powder, salt and pickles
• heat a generous amount of oil in a pan over medium high heat. when the oil is hot, drop batter (amount depends on how large you want your fritters) and fry on both sides until golden brown.
  

squash fritters with summer corn salad (csa week 4)

a giant yellow squash was living in my refrigerator. and i, dear readers, made a promise to you all to attempt to not just eat all of my csa veggies raw or sauteed with garlic. i had visions of squash fritters. i think this probably stemmed from the desire to fry some squash blossoms but this was difficult seeing as i didn't have the blossoms to fry. i was a little bit worried that the yellow squash wouldn't be as solid as green and therefore not so fritterly successful. however, the yellow squash's delicate flavor (compared to green) made this taste practically blossom-like!

i made a little corn salad to go with them since i finally have corn in my fridge and i absolutely adore summer corn salads. it's one of those things, don't know why but i can't get enough. both of these items were relatively quick and easy. frying took the most time but i see no reason why you shouldn't just take two giant skillets (or more) and cook as many fritters as possible at one time.

squash fritters

• squash (i had one giant one)
• 1 egg
• (gluten-free) bread crumbs

• 2 tablespoons of flour of choice (spelt or gluten-free)
• parmesan cheese, grated
• salt and pepper
• oil for frying

• grate squash on the large holes of a box grater, squeeze out liquid.
• mix grated squash, one egg, breadcrumbs and flour until the mixture binds together.
• add salt, pepper, and parmesan, mix.
• add enough oil to coat the bottom of a pan and heat.
• fry heaping tablespoons of the squash "batter" until golden brown on both sides.

summer corn salad

• corn, cut off of cob
  
• 1 red onion, diced
  
• 1 small tomato, diced
  
• basil, chopped
  
• salt and pepper

• you can use the corn raw, or saute it in a pan for a few minutes, if desired.
• mix all ingredients together.
  

road trip! red arrow diner (new hampshire)

i am hopelessly addicted to the food network. there is nothing i rather hear in the background while puttering around at home. a person cannot watch a lot of food network without catching diners, drive-ins and dives every once in a while. now i realize it is pretty disgusting to watch guy fieri stuff his over-tanning-booth-tanned face HOWEVER, this guy (haha) has come up with some deeeliiccious looking places. that being said, it is hard for me to get in a car and go somewhere without checking if one of these spots is on the way.

enter red arrow diner in manchester, new hampshire. thanks to the food network, i now visit this diner when i am visiting family and consume massive amounts of (tasty) grease.

apparently, guy deemed american chop suey the house specialty. however, as far as i'm concerned, this is the red arrow star- "special" hash browns. i get mine veggies and cheese style. it has lots of veggies: mushrooms, onions, peppers, tomatoes, and crispy hash browns, all topped with that delicious slightly artificial white american cheese that gets all gooey and melty...on this particular trip, i also got 2 eggs along with it AND ATE THE WHOLE THING. ignore that toast trying to creep into the corner of my picture (i didn't eat it).


ok, this was just overkill but you cannot leave this place without ordering a slice of pie. they are so beautifu and beckon to you from the fridge. chocolate cream pie seemed like the obvious choice here. this one was the kind where the cream has more than it's fair share of shortening in it. i was only slightly disappointed at how much it dominated the chocolate portion of the pie. needless to say, i left quite full and happy.