Corn Fritters with Tomato Relish & Avocado

Posted by thesensitivefoodie on August 27, 2013 in Breakfast, Dairy Free, Egg Free, Gluten Free, Nut Free, Soy Free, Vegetarian, Vegetarian Dishes | 5 Comments

Do you have a signature dish? This has become mine. One friend has gone as far to say, that if he had to pick his last meal, these fritters would be his choice. Big call! And of course, I am not horrible enough to send him pictures of corn fritters every time I make them……..”insert wicked chuckle”

When I first found that my food issues are gluten, dairy & eggs, my first thought was about not being able to have these fritters. They have become a favourite weekend breakfast in our house, and if I don’t cook them for visiting friends, there can be sulking. With much trepidation, I decided to have a go at adapting them. I took my first nervous bite, and then broke out in a happy dance 🙂 They are fantastic, you can not tell the difference. (I was happy to find that creamed corn, doesn’t actually contain cream, and it works as a good binder, so I didn’t need eggs to hold it together. I have given you below the options for both with and without gluten, dairy &/or eggs. I don’t believe in making things difficult, and if you can have things with gluten, dairy &/or eggs, then of course, leave them in. But if you can’t, trust me, no one has any idea that they are any different. I don’t make different batches, I make them all the same and everyone still loves them.

There is one trick though; a good tomato chutney, with some minced chilli stirred through as a topping, it really makes this dish. I serve the corn fritters with sliced avocado, tomato relish & bacon, and for the dairy tolerant, a dollop of sour cream. You could go to the effort of using fresh corn and creaming your own corn, I’m sure that would make them even better, but at breakfast time ‘ain’t nobody got time for that!’

Suitable for: gluten, dairy, egg, soy & nut free diets. Also vegetarian and vegan, without the optional sides.

Ingredients (serves 4)

• 1 cup self raising flour (I use Yes You Can gluten free Self Raising Flour)
• 420g can of sweet corn kernels
• 420g can of creamed corn
• 1/2 cup milk (I use Vitasoy protein enriched rice milk with chick pea)
• 1/4 cup fresh chives, chopped, plus some extra to garnish
• 2-3 shallots (scallions), thinly sliced
• 2 eggs (if you can’t have them, just leave them out, and add 2 tablespoons extra milk)
• olive oil – enough to fill your frying pan about 0.5 cm deep (otherwise they will stick to the pan)
• 8 tablespoons tomato relish – if you can find it, use Baxters Tomato Chutney with Peppers (see below picture)
• Minced red chilli – about 1-2 teaspoons, mixed into the relish to your personal taste
• 1 Avocado, Sliced
• Optional Serving extras – bacon rashers, oven cooked mini tomatoes and/or sour cream.

Method

1. Add flour, corn, creamed corn, milk, chives & shallots to a large mixing bowl and stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper, and stir through.
2. Heat enough olive oil in a large fry pan to a depth of about 0.5cm, over a medium heat. Add a heaped tablespoon of mixture at a time, using the back of the spoon to push the mixture out into a flat circle. Cook for approx 2 minutes on each side, until golden brown. Continue with remaining mixture (I put mine a bowl lined with absorbent paper and with foil over the top to keep them warm while I cook the rest. Or pop into a preheated oven on a really low temperature.
3. Place onto plates and serve with sliced avocado, tomato relish and sprinkle with remaining chopped chives. Serve with bacon, tomatoes &/or sour cream if having.

I’d love to know what you think of these if you make them! What is your signature dish?