Bright beet and potato fritters and a little photography news

I fell in love with Donna Hay’s beet, sweet potato and potato fritters in Issue 38 because of the beautiful color and unusual texture of the fritters (enhanced, of course, by the wonderful way they were photographed). The fritters are formed by (according to Donna’s method) running a zester over the length of the potatoes and beets to cut them into thin strands. A rather laborious process to say the least, but I found an easy shortcut that I am so in love with I’m thinking about new dishes solely for an excuse to apply it: the Benriner turning slicer.

This low-tech but amazing gadget slices vegetables into a single long strand (or other shapes) in seconds. I sound like a commercial, but really, it’s quite nifty. I opted to leave out the sweet potato, as I am not a huge fan of them, and instead used half beet and half potato. I had all 300 grams dissected in a minute, and beautiful deep red and pink (the beet colors the potato) fritters not long thereafter. This is such a beautiful and clever approach that it gives me all sorts of inspiration: a breakfast version with a poached egg on top. A rendition with onion. A version with celery root and potato.

The fritters are seasoned with sumac salt, a mix of sea salt and ground sumac. Sumac is a middle eastern spice that I was not previously familiar with. It has a pleasant lemony taste that is a nice counterpoint to the beet and potato. It’s really not necessary, though, simple sea salt and pepper would work well too, and perhaps a sprinkling of chive on the top.

(excerpt from Joshi Camera Magazine)

On a completely different topic, I want to share some exciting news: this month, I am featured in Joshi Camera magazine, a Japanese photography magazine for girls. The article is about 25 female photographers. I am very proud to be one of the four Americans selected for this edition. I received my copy late last week and was so pleased to see how beautiful the magazine is and what wonderful company I am in. I have a two page spread right at the beginning of the article. The other Americans are Amy Sandoval, whose child photography I enjoy, Paula Swift, and Brenda Acuncius.

(excerpt from Joshi Camera Magazine)

I’m posting the cover and my two pages here, but if you live near a Japanese bookstore have a look at the others. The photography is really wonderful. (p.s. if anyone speaks Japanese and can let me know what they wrote here, I would love to know! I assume it's a translation of the questionnaire I responded to but I would never know!).

(excerpt from Joshi Camera Magazine)

Beet and potato fritters with sumac salt (adapted from Donna Hay issue 38)
Serves 8

For the fritters
150 g beet, peeled
150 g (floury) potato, peeled
¼ cup rice flour
1 egg white, lightly beaten
Sea salt and cracked black pepper
Vegetable oil for shallow frying

Sumac salt (or chopped chive)
¼ cup sea salt flakes
1 tablespoon ground sumac

Combine sea salt and sumac to make sumac salt. Set aside.

Run a zester over potato and beet to create long strands, or, indulge in the Benriner turning slicer. Combine sliced beet and potatoes with egg, flour, salt and pepper (mix well).

Heat ¼ inch oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. Spoon ½ cupfuls of beet and potato mixture into frying pan, flattening slightly and frying for ~1 minute on each side until golden and crispy. Remove from pan, drain on paper towel and sprinkle with sumac salt or chive and additional salt and pepper to taste.

Time to make the donuts: Italian Zeppole

I was so excited when I saw that Tartelette and Culinary Concoctions by Peabody were hosting "Time to Make the Donuts," a donut blogging event. After all, what a great excuse to make the universally crowd pleasing fried goodie! What's more, it gave me a great opportunity to go back and revisit a very old post and update it with new photos and thoughts. Thanks, guys, for justifying frying up a batch of these sweet treats!

Every culture has it's own take on fried dough. In Italy, it's Zeppole, which is traditionally served for St. Joseph's day in March. For more about the history and tradition read here. Zeppole can be filled with custard, or a honey mixture or can be unfilled. There's a version that is made with ricotta cheese that is next on my list. There is also a savory variety that incorporates anchovy. Zeppole are typically rolled in powdered sugar and / or cinnamon once cooked. They are light and airy, and about two inches in diameter.

The recipe that I've used many times is from Giada De Laurentiis. The batter is simple and fool-proof and can be whipped up in less than 10 minutes. There's no waiting, refrigerating, rising, or pastry bags involved. The tricks are to use a tablespoon-sized ice cream scoop to measure out equal portions of dough, and to fry the zeppole in small batches of 4-6 (depending on your pot size) so as not to overcrowd your pan and lower the temperature of the oil. The only adjustment I make (noted below) is to add vanilla extract to the batter and, if you like, some grated lemon zest. These must be eaten right away. The batter can be prepared ahead and you can fry them right before serving.


Zeppole (adapted from Giada De Laurentiis)
(yield: 4-6 servings)

1 vanilla bean
1/2 cup sugar, plus 3 tablespoons
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 stick butter
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup water
1 cup all-purpose flour
4 eggs
Optional: 3/4 tablespoon vanilla extract
Optional: 1/2+ teaspoon grated lemon zest
Olive oil, for frying

Cut open the vanilla bean lengthwise. Using the back of a knife, scrape along the inside of the vanilla bean to collect the seeds. Scrape vanilla bean seeds into a small bowl. Add the 1/2 cup sugar and cinnamon and stir to combine. Set aside.

In a medium saucepan combine the butter, salt, 3 tablespoons of sugar, and water over medium heat. Bring to a boil. Take pan off the heat and stir in the flour. Return pan to the heat and stir continuously until mixture forms a ball, about 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer the flour mixture to a medium bowl. Add vanilla extract and / or lemon zest if using. Using an electric hand mixer on low speed, add eggs, 1 at a time, incorporating each egg completely before adding the next. Beat until smooth. If not frying immediately, cover with plastic wrap and reserve in the refrigerator.

Meanwhile, pour enough oil into a large frying pan to reach a depth of two inches. Heat the oil over medium heat until a deep-fry thermometer registers 375 degrees F (watch the temperature as you fry and adjust heat accordingly to maintain 375 F).

Using a small ice-cream scooper or 2 small spoons, carefully drop about a tablespoon of the dough into the hot olive oil, frying in batches. The zeppole will immediately float to the top and puff up. Turn the zeppole once or twice with the size of a slotted spoon, cooking until golden and puffed up, about 5 minutes (watch constantly as cooking time might also be quite a bit shorter). Drain on paper towels. Toss with cinnamon-sugar. Arrange on a platter (or in a cone) and serve immediately.