Zucchini and Chickpea Fritters

When I first saw this recipe on Just Hungry, I was super excited. It was actually called zucchini and chickpea pancakes. I thought the end result of the crispy outside and the super savory inside reminded me more of a fritter. I think what intrigued me the most was that the batter was made with chickpea flour, which I had never heard of.

Zucchini and Chickpea Fritters

So, I went on a hunt and found some at Whole Foods, although there it was called garbanzo bean flour (same thing). It was Bob's Red Mill Garbanzo Bean Flour, to be exact. 

This stuff is so healthy for you. Loaded with fiber and protein, and it tastes good? Yeah, you can't beat that!
Anyways, I'm excited to share this recipe with you because these fritters were so delicious. I had them for dinner with a big pile of egg whites.

To make these a little more healthy, I didn't cook them in oil, I just used cook spray for the pan. Adapted from Just Hungry.

Zucchini and Chickpea Fritters

2 zucchini, or 5 C shredded

1 C chickpea flour (garbanzo bean)

1 tsp salt

1 tsp garam masala*

1/2 tsp curry powder

1/8 tsp cayenne

Finely shred the zucchini (with a grater or food processor), and set aside in a large bowl. In a small bowl, add flour, salt and spices and mix well to combine. Add flour mixture to zucchini and mix well. It may seem like everything won't incorporate, but the zucchini actually gives off a lot of liquid. If you need to, you can add a T of water. Heat a large skillet and spray with cook spray. Pour half of the batter into the skillet and spread a little to form a circle. (It will be big!) Cook for about 4 minutes on each side. Make a small cut in the middle to make sure the batter is all the way cooked (no oozing).  Remove from pan and repeat with the other half of the batter. Cut into wedges and serve. 

This serves 2-4 depending on what else you are serving. I had one whole fritter with egg whites and I was quite full after dinner. If you are serving for brunch along side something sweet, 1/2 of a fritter may be plenty. 

*The thing I liked best about these was how spicy they were! And I mean full-of-flavor spicy, not hot. The garam masala (my new favorite spice) smelled like cloves and cinnamon; wow, it had my kitchen smelling good! I had never used it before and didn't really know what it was, but I learned a lot about it here. Garam masala, also known as the magic spice, is used in a lot of Indian dishes. It is actually a blend of spices (like my pumpkin pie spice!) and guess what? There are cloves and cinnamon in it! I'm so smart! haha

But seriously, if you like breakfast for dinner, and if you love zucchini, then you will love this recipe.