Spicy Zucchini Pancakes with Green Goddess Dressing

What better way to celebrate Summer Solstice than with Spicy Zucchini Pancakes and Green Goddess dressing?

I’ve always been a fan of shredded vegetable fritters, whether it’s potato latkes or little zucchini pancakes like this. One of the most important things to remember is to squeeze as much moisture out of the shredded veggies as possible or you’ll end up with a hot soggy mess in your skillet.

I wanted to add some heat to the pancakes to contrast the cooling effect of the Goddess dressing, hence the addition of the red pepper flakes. Adding them is entirely up to your taste, but I think it adds the perfect amount of complexity to the combination to contrast the herbiness of the dressing. Obviously, use your own discretion at the amount to add and remember – it doesn’t take much.

This recipe makes about 8 little pancakes, perfect as an appetizer for four people or a meal (along with a nice green salad) for two.

Spicy Zucchini Pancakes with Green Goddess Dressing

For the pancakes:

 1 zucchini

1 shallot

Kosher salt and black pepper

1 tablespoon whole wheat flour

¼ cup egg whites (or 1 egg, beaten)

½ cup panko bread crumbs

½ teaspoon red pepper flakes (adjust to taste)

Shred the zucchini and shallot in a food processor, season with a little salt and pepper. Dump the veggies out onto a paper or tea towel and squeeze out all the excess liquid. Mix together with the remaining ingredients. Take about two tablespoons and form into a patty, fry over medium-high heat for about 1 ½ minutes each side or until browned and warmed through.

For the dressing:

½ cup chopped herbs (I used basil, tarragon, and chives)

½ cup light mayonnaise

½ cup light sour cream

1 tablespoon vinegar (anything but white, I used champagne, but tarragon or white wine would also be nice)

Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

Mix together all ingredients in food processor until thoroughly combined, or in a small mixing bowl with an immersion blender. Let chill in the refrigerator for about 30 minutes for the flavors to blend sufficiently.

Cajun Jambalaya

Fat Tuesday is fast approaching and with it the requirement to enjoy true N’awlins style cuisine. Years and years ago I worked at a casino and made friends with a nice guy who’d just moved to the Seattle area from Louisiana. One of his hobbies was sharing his Southern food with us “Yanks.” He’d set up a booth at local festivals and dish out dirty rice, red beans, and jambalaya in Styrofoam clamshells with a healthy sprinkling of Tony Chachere’s Creole Seasoning – the only true Creole seasoning according to that Southern boy.

His jambalaya recipe was my first foray into the intriguing world of Cajun and Creole cooking, a style of cooking so rich in history and tradition you can’t help but be sucked into it. I’ve never looked back.

This is a Cajun style jambalaya, that is sans tomatoes. It relies on the browned sausage and chicken to deepen the flavor and a precise ratio of liquid to rice to get the final dish perfectly fluffy instead of soupy like its Creole cousin.

When you’re browning the sausage and chicken, really give it a chance to let the Maillard reaction take place – this is where you get that nice brown crust and those lovely little browned bits that stick to the bottom of the pot, also known as “the fond.” It’s this browning reaction that creates the nice deep flavor we crave in so many Southern dishes. Use a little oil in the pan, and try not to use a nonstick pan if you can. It will still work with nonstick pan, just not quite as well in my experience.

Really give the meat a few minutes to cook – don’t go fiddling around with it, pushing it around. If you give it a little nudge with your cooking utensil and it doesn’t want to move, listen. Leave it alone for a little while longer and it will be ready to give way – that’s when you know the browning reaction has taken place.

Also, make sure you don’t crowd the pan too much. If there isn’t enough room around each piece of meat for the water to evaporate, you’re going to end up with steamed sausage and chicken – not browned.

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cilantro-jalapeño falafel

In the world of Middle Eastern delights falafel is surely a giant. It’s beloved throughout a region in which strife is no mere stranger. Instead of embracing a common interest though, each region has attempted to stake its claim on the chickpea-patty delight to force their counterparts out of the falafel-making game.

How typical.

As they bicker, however, we can continue to enjoy our falafels in peace. Should we feel particularly ambitious we could introduce the she-sells-seashells-esque tongue twister that is the Falafel-Waffle.

Just as the favored shapes of falafel vary from patty to ball to waffle (even some little spaceship shaped ellipses in NC once) the recipes are going to vary just as often. Some load theirs up with tahini; others focus on the green herbs. This cilantro-jalapeño version was inspired by a certain vegetarian friend of mine and maintains a lovely freshness from the cilantro while simultaneously giving you a little kick in the pants from the jalapeño.

No worries, it’s an enjoyable kick.

While the flavoring agents of your typical falafel change as often Lindsay Lohan’s incarceration status, the nutritional benefits are largely the same. A single cup of chickpeas is going to cost you a mere 269 calories and provide you with, no lie, 50% of your daily allotment of fiber. Move over bran muffins, falafel’s come to town. Add to that a quarter of your RDA for iron and 15 grams of protein and it’s no wonder the chickpea is a staple in the Middle East.

As for this recipe specifically, it’s a moist version. I’ve had some falafels so dry they might as well have been deep-fried sawdust. It’s an unpleasant experience. These are quite moist and, while a little more difficult to handle from their stickiness, are totally worth the leftover falafel mixture stuck under your fingernails.

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smoky three-bean chili

This is probably one of the better chilies I’ve had recently. I’m sure that it will never please a chili purist, but a chili purist I am not. I think chili can have beans and meat, either or both. It can be flavored and cooked in a myriad of ways. The only thing that should matter in the end is how it tastes – and this tasted damn good.

The smokiness of the chipotle in adobo and the smoked paprika were a pleasant diversion from the standard peppers and chili powder flavors of most chilies. It has a lot of heat – if you’re not one for spiciness I’d highly recommend substituting green bell peppers for the Anaheims and maybe omitting a chipotle pepper. I personally love the contrast of the smoky, spicy chili with the coolness of the sour cream and the richness of the avocado on top.

This recipe does call for a bottled jar of sauce. This isn’t something I usually do for recipes, but I had it on hand for a different recipe that required its use for a contest. I never ended up making that specific recipe, nor did I gain entry into the contest, so there it stood, staring at me from the counter. I didn’t feel like going to the store to grab diced tomatoes and tomato paste, so I used the bottled sauce. I have to admit, it was delicious and I’ll probably use it again in the future. That being said, if you are anti-processed food (and who can blame you after the monstrosity that is Sandra Lee) feel free to compensate by using diced tomatoes, a couple tablespoons of tomato paste plus some oregano and red chili flakes.

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sausages and white beans with tomatoes

Hearty dishes of beans and sausages are perfect for those last few wintry days before spring that just won't seem to loosen their grasp.

After spending the last two weeks in Hawaii it was easy to forget that there are still numerous parts of the country still firmly in winter's icy grip. Also, even if it's warmer here in North Carolina than when I left - it's still too chilly to check the mail in shorts and a tank top.

But, until the days when I'm begging for air conditioning and iced cocktails, I'll continue to find a place on the weekly menu for stick-to-the-ribs meals like this one.

It calls for soaking the beans overnight and then cooking them for several hours, but I don't think anyone will care too much if you just used canned. I know I'll be using canned if I make it again - I just can't get over the firmness of dried beans and don't have the patience to boil them for three days to get the mushy consistency I prefer.

In other words, cheating is OK.

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