olive oil and sunflower oil, for roasting and frying
1small handfulsage, optional
How I make it
Preheat the oven to 220 °C.
Mix the pieces of pumpkin with a little olive oil. Transfer to a roasting pan and cover with foil. Roast until completely soft, anything from half an hour to an hour or more, depending on the size of your pumpkin chunks. If using butternut squash, you can roast it whole. The skin is edible after roasting, but you may discard it if you like. Set aside to cool a little.
Add the pumpkin to a bowl. Mash with a fork. Add the other ingredients one by one and keep mixing and mashing until you have a thick batter. Season, keeping in mind the cheese also adds saltiness.
Heat a generous amount of oil in a thick-based frying pan over medium heat. I use around 3-4 Tbsp sunflower oil and 1 Tbsp olive oil, adding more as necessary as I go along.
If you have time, fry a test fritter to check for seasoning and texture. The water contents of pumpkin after roasting may vary, so if the batter is too soft, add a little more flour.
Use a tablespoon to add batter to the pan. Fry the fritters until the underside is nicely coloured, 2–3 minutes. Flip and fry until golden all over and cooked through, a couple of minutes more. Transfer to a plate covered with kitchen towels to drain off excess oil.
After adding the last fritter to the pan, add a handful of sage leaves. Fry until crispy but not burnt, a couple of minutes. Serve immediately.
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