Corn Fritters with Tomato & Avocado Salsa

Every week on Simon Mayo's Saturday show, we're joined by food and wine expert, Nigel Barden, who talks us through incredible recipes and the wines that go with them. As well as satisfying your taste buds, we also satisfy your ears with a classical track that compliments the food perfectly.

Simon Mayo's show is on from 10am until 1pm every Saturday and you can listen here. On Saturday 6th July we made Corn Fritters with Tomato & Avocado Salsa

The full recipe is below:

Corn Fritters with Tomato & Avocado Salsa

by Rachel Ama from Vegan Eats (Ebury Press)

Crispy corn fritters, packed with veg & polenta & served with a juicy tomato & avocado salsa – a perfect pairing!

Makes 8 fritters

Prep time: 25 mins

Cooking time: 15 mins

Ingredients

For the corn fritters

Kernels from 1 corn on the cob

100g courgettes, coarsely grated

150g peeled butternut squash or carrots, coarsely grated

100g polenta

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp ground cumin

2 spring onions, finely sliced

1Ž2 fresh red chilli, deseeded & finely chopped

Small handful of fresh coriander leaves, roughly chopped

100ml oat milk, plus extra if needed (to make your own, see below)

3 tbsp self-raising flour

2 flax eggs (see below)

Olive oil, for frying

Salt & black pepper

For the tomato & avocado salsa

2 ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped

1 avocado, chopped

1 red onion, finely diced

Small handful of fresh coriander leaves, roughly chopped

Juice & grated zest of 1 lime

2 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

Method

Place all the ingredients for the fritters in a large bowl, season with salt & pepper & mix with a wooden spoon until everything is combined, adding a little more milk if the mixture seems too thick.

Heat a little olive oil in a large, non-stick frying pan.

Add 2 tbsp of the mixture per fritter & then flatten slightly to about 1cm thick.

Fry over a medium heat for 2-3mins or until crispy & brown on the bottom, then flip over & cook for another 2-3mins until crisp & golden on the other side.

Repeat with the remaining mixture, cooking in batches & adding more oil to the pan as needed.

Keep the fritters warm on a baking sheet in the oven on a low heat while you finish making them.

Meanwhile, mix all the ingredients for the tomato & avocado salsa in a bowl, season with salt & pepper & serve with the fritters.

Oat Milk

Makes about 1.25L

100g rolled oats

1 litre water

Pinch of salt

Cover the oats in water in a bowl & leave to soak for at least 1 hour.

Drain the oats, then tip them into a high-speed blender or a food processor, add the water & the salt & blitz until smooth. Take care to not over-mix as the heat from the blender/processor blades can cause the oats to warm up & begin to cook, thus changing the texture of the milk & making it slimy.

Once blended, strain the milk through a muslin cloth into a bowl.

Squeeze the cloth to extract all the liquid & discard the pulp left behind.

Pour the milk into an airtight container & store in the fridge for up to 4 days. (Nigel says if you don’t have a muslin cloth, use a coffee filter).

Flax Egg

Best for binding (makes the equivalent of 1 egg)

1 tbsp ground flaxseeds

3 tbsp water

Mix together the ground flaxseeds & water in a bowl & allow to sit for at least 10mins until it becomes gel-like in consistency.

What is Scala Radio?

Scala Radio is a brand-new entertainment radio station that breaks the mould of classical music in the UK, fronted by presenters Simon Mayo, Angellica Bell, Mark Kermode, Chris Rogers and William Orbit. Playing familiar masters from Mozart and Holst to surprising new works from living composers like Karl Jenkins, Rebecca Dale and Thom Yorke, film scores and musicals, along with performances by bright young artists like Alexis Ffrench, Jess Gillam and Sheku Kanneh-Mason, Scala Radio is an exciting discovery of classical music for modern life.

Featuring music that may be a surprising discovery or re-discovery, championed by presenters with personalities, and showcasing classical music through the lens of modern life.