Recipe Swap: Cauliflower Cheese Fritters
I have been cooking cauliflower a lot recently, so I was excited when I got a recipe for Cauliflower Cheese Fritters from the blog Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks in the latest Taste of Home Cooking Recipe Swap featuring side dishes.
Just a few weeks ago I made delicious dish called Bang Bang Cauliflower, a tempura battered cauliflower tossed with a creamy Sriracha sauce. These fritters reminded me a bit of the consistency of the Bang Bang Cauliflower which is probably why I ate 4 of them as soon as I finished cooking them! They were really, really good. And while they make a great side dish, they would also make a great appetizer if you made them a little smaller.
I made one small mistake, but it didn't change the flavor of the dish at all. I fried the fritters in just a small amount of oil; the original recipe calls for frying and then finishing in the oven. I let them go longer than instructed, and they became a nice golden brown so I didn't want to overcook them by also throwing them in the oven. And since I only used a thin layer of oil in the bottom of my pan, they weren't all that greasy. But if you want to cut some of the fat, these would work just fine fried and then finished in the oven.
Now the picture below is a bit silly, but I had to take it to show you how big and fluffy these little fritters were! Aren't they pretty? And can't you just tell how crunchy they were on the outside, and fluffy on the inside?
Here is the recipe for Cauliflower Cheese Fritters.
Source: Hezzi-D's Books and Cooks
Ingredients
- 3/4 c flour
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1 egg
- 1/2 c milk
- 2 c chopped, raw cauliflower (I used about half of a medium sized head of cauliflower and chopped it into tiny pieces)
- 1 c cheddar cheese
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
- Mix the flour, baking powder, salt, pepper, egg, and milk together in a bowl. Stir until a smooth batter forms.
- Stir in the cauliflower, cheese, garlic, and red pepper flakes; mix well. Put in the refrigerator for at least 20 minutes.
- I did this but never ended up baking them - Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray.
- Heat 3 tbsp olive oil in a large skillet (I used about 1/4 inch max deep of oil in a non-stick pan). Working in batches, drop large spoonfuls of the cauliflower mixture into the oil. Saute for 3 minutes on each side or until just browned. I browned them completely in the pan.
- If baking them, Transfer to the baking sheet. Cook for 5-10 minutes in the oven or until cooked through. Immediately sprinkle with salt and serve hot.
Check out the other recipes featured in this swap -
