For a light meal, enjoy this simple dish with a dollop of yogurt and a drizzle of honey
Diana Henry The Telegraph's award-winning cookery writer
Diana Henry is the Telegraph’s much-loved cookery writer. She shares recipes each week, for everything from speedy family dinners to special menus that friends will remember for months. She is also a regular broadcaster on BBC Radio 4, and her journalism and recipe books, including Simple and How to Eat a Peach, are multi-award-winning. A mother of two sons, Diana can satisfy even the fussiest of eaters.
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The salad is more like a relish here, and it’s delicious with the fritters. I do like salty foods with sweet ones – so honey with halloumi works for me – but omit the final drizzle if you’re not keen. Use the batter soon after making for perfect fritters.
Requires 30 minutes resting time
Overview
Prep time
20 mins
Cook time
20 mins
Serves
4
- 8 as a light lunch or starter
Ingredients
For the salad
- 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 3-4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- ¼-½ tsp runny honey
- 6 large shallots, finely chopped
- leaves from 100g fresh mint
For the fritters
- 400g courgettes, trimmed and coarsely grated
- 250g halloumi, drained and diced
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 1½ tsp baking powder
- 50g plain flour
- leaves from 6 mint sprigs, finely chopped
- olive oil, for frying
To serve
- Greek yogurt
- Greek honey
- toasted sesame seeds
Method
Step
For the salad, mix 1 tbsp lemon juice with 3-4 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, ¼-½ tsp runny honey and some salt and pepper in a small bowl, then taste. You need a good balance and a little sweetness.
Step
Add 6 finely chopped shallots and leave them sitting in this for half an hour.
Step
Put 400g grated courgette – in batches – into a brand-new J-cloth and squeeze out the excess moisture (don’t skip this bit otherwise the batter will be watery!)
Step
Put it into a big bowl, then add 250g diced halloumi, 2 lightly beaten eggs, 1½ tsp baking powder, 50g plain flour, finely chopped leaves from 6 mint sprigs and a little salt and pepper (but go easy on the salt because of the halloumi).
Step
Put the leaves from 100g fresh mint for the salad into a serving bowl and add the dressing with the shallots. You don’t want to leave this hanging around for too long before serving, or it will go brown, but the fritters don’t take long to cook.
Step
Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a frying pan and add spoonfuls of the batter, enough to make four rounds about 6cm in diameter (you’re going to make eight in total).
Step
Cook these until they are set and golden underneath, then turn them over and cook on the other side.
Step
Turn the heat down so that the batter gets properly cooked through. You can keep the first 4 fritters warm in a low oven while you do the other 4. Add more oil as and when you need to.
Step
Serve with a dollop of yogurt and a drizzle of honey, with a sprinkle of sesame seeds on top, and the salad alongside.