Zucchini Pancakes

Many many years ago, I ran across a recipe in Gourmet magazine when I was trying to find something different to do with some excess zucchini from my garden (at the bottom of the blog there’s some quick pictures of how this year’s garden is doing). Since I loved potato pancakes and my husband’s grandma’s zucchini flower fritters, a recipe for zucchini pancakes caught me eye since try as I might, I always missed picking the zucchini flowers when I should!

Over the years I adapted the recipe to make it easier and I’ve added a little variation to increase the number of veggies I’m getting in the mix and to add some color.

Zucchini Pancakes

4 cups grated zucchini (this is about 2 or 3 large zucchini)
1/2 cup diced onions (you can substitute scallions here for a little zip or leeks for an earthier taste)
1/4 cup diced red peppers (can be omitted)
1/4 cup diced carrots (can be omitted)

Pancake Batter to bind everything (You can also use store-bought pancake mix):
2 c. sifted all-purpose flour
3 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
2 tbsp. sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 c. milk
3 tbsp. oil

Grate zucchini on the largest holes of a grater into a colander and combine well with salt. Let zucchini drain 30 minutes.

Using hands, squeeze as much liquid from zucchini as possible (DO NOT COOK THE ZUCCHINI).

Saute the onions, carrots and peppers until soft. (Again, you can omit the carrots and peppers)

Mix together the pancake batter ingredients until you get a nice rich consistency (adjust accordingly). Add the zucchini/vegetables to the batter.

For some variation, you can add a 1/2 cup to 1 cup of cheese to the mix. Best choices on the cheese are swiss, gruyere, cheddar or fontina. Keep to nutty mild flavors so they don’t overpower the zucchini.

Lightly grease a non-stick skillet and cook pancakes 2 to 3 minutes on each side, or until golden and cooked through. Keep pancakes warm in oven while making more pancakes.

Serve as a side with some nice grilled chicken or other meat.

Want to make it healthier? Make your own pancake batter using a whole grain flour.

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