Fried Fish with Zucchini Corn Fritters

Parenting pop quiz: your baby finally goes down for a late morning nap. You're feeling a little tired yourself. Do you...

a) Take a nap
b) Take a relaxing hot shower
c) Sit down with a favorite book
d) Grab the cast iron skillet and fry up some fish and fritters

If you chose A, B, or C, congratulations on being a normal, well-adjusted adult. If you chose D, welcome to Club Nutzo. At least I'm in good company.

Before Ben takes a nap, I feel exhausted. I promise myself that I'm going to nap with him, that we'll snuggle and snooze the afternoon away for one of those epic naps where you wake up and the light outside has shifted and you wonder 'My oh my, how long have I been gone?'

But then he falls asleep, and my eyes open wide. 'I could do another load of laundry,' I think to myself. 'Or I could dig up some dandelions. Or I could teach myself to crochet...' Sleep falls down the priority list and my engine starts up again.

So with a free hour stretching out before me the other day while Ben napped and I...didn't, I decided to cook (surprise surprise). We had fresh walleye in the fridge thanks to my honey's recent fishing tournament - no cash prize this time, but fresh fish is still a prize in my mind. Plus, I still had some zucchini and corn in the freezer from last season to use up. Fish and fritters it is!


Doesn't that look nummy? Hot off the griddle.

I cooked this up, enjoyed a few bites...and still got in a little nap before my well-rested baby boy woke up. Double joy.

Fried Fish with Zucchini Corn Fritters
If you don't have zucchini and corn in the freezer, I wouldn't go out and buy it for this; just bookmark this recipe for August when you're swimming in zukes. And then store some of those veggies away in the freezer, so you can pull it out for a taste of summer whenever you'd like.

Vegetable oil for frying

Fish
1-2 lbs walleye fillets (or other firm white fish)
1 egg, beaten
1 sleeve saltine crackers, put in a large Ziploc bag and FINELY crushed
1 tsp. seasoned salt

Fritters
1/2 cup all purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup grated zucchini
1 cup corn kernels
2 tablespoon chopped fresh chives

First, mix up the fritters. In a large bowl, mix flour, salt, pepper, and baking soda. Then add zucchini, corn and chives, mixing well. Let sit while you prepare the fish; the batter will moisten as it sits.

Heat oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering, enough to cover the entire surface but not so anything could swim in there (maybe 4 Tbls, depending on the size of your pan). Mix crushed saltines and seasoned salt in large Ziploc bag; dip fish fillets in egg and then add to saltine bag; shake it up to coat the fish.

Carefully place coated fish in hot oil and fry until browned on one side, flipping to brown the other side. When fully browned and cooked through, remove from pan and place on paper-towel-covered plate.

Add more oil to the skillet if needed and heat until shimmering. Working quickly, grab the fritter dough with your hands in small balls, flattening to make thick patties. Carefully place in hot oil, repeating until pan is full (you'll only have room for half the fritters first time through) and sauté until cooked through, browned, and crisp, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to platter. Repeat with remaining patties, adding more oil, if needed. Serve hot with fish.