Gluten Free Carrot Fritters

Are these fritters, latkes, pancakes, or something else? I’m not really sure, but I can’t stop making them! So many of our CSA vegetables can grated, gently mixed with egg and flour then pan fried to perfection. For this gluten-free batch I changed things up a bit from our normal fritter recipe.  I tried gluten free garbanzo bean flour with this version and it gave the fritters a nice nutty flavor. I also whisked smoked paprika and cumin into the dry ingredients. Cumin compliments the carrots, and the smoked paprika gave them a hint of spice. Once the carrots are grated these come together in no time.

It’s no secret we’ve been giving our new food processor a workout in the farm kitchen! If you have one a large food processor grates and slices in no time. If you don’t, a box grater and some elbow grease will do the job. For vegetables with a higher water content like summer squash, potatoes, and kohlrabi you must squeeze out the water before mixing the batter. For carrots, I found that they had just enough moisture to hold the batter together and skipped the squeezing step.

Whisk the dry ingredients together before combining them with the egg and carrots. This helps evenly distribute the spices. When everything is mixed dinner is almost ready! I like to use a cast iron skillet for pan-frying these in olive oil. The cast iron retains heat, so you might lower the flame a little as you go. Keep the oil on medium high to keep it from reaching it’s smoke point.

Cook the fritters about 2 – 3 minutes per side until they’re golden. They will still be soft during the first flip, but they should be firm when you take them out of the pan. Drain on paper towels and stir together the sauce ingredients.

There are a lot of options for a sauce for these carrot fritters (and any fritter really). The dill from Week 8 kept surprisingly well wrapped in a plastic bag, so I used that. Half the amount of dried dill will work as a substitute for the fresh dill. I served these with basil pesto mayonnaise (equal amounts of mayo and pesto) and they were great. If you stashed any pesto in the freezer thaw some out for this meal. Other ideas: make the sauce without dill and extra lemon zest, try a tahini dressing, like the one in this salad.

Gluten Free Carrot Fritters

3 cups grated carrots (about 3 large carrots or more smaller carrots)
1/2 cup garbanzo bean or chickpea flour
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika (optional)
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs, lightly beaten
olive oil for pan-frying

Dill Yogurt Sauce

1/2 cup plain whole milk yogurt or greek yogurt
2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried dill
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
2 – 3 grinds fresh black pepper

Place grated carrots in a large bowl. Whisk together dry ingredients. Use a spatula to fold the carrots, beaten eggs, and dry ingredients together. Mix until thoroughly combined.

Heat a thin layer of olive oil in cast iron skillet or sauté pan. When the oil is shimmering, but not smoking add batter by the 1/4 cup full being careful not to crowd the pan. Cook 2 – 3 minutes per side until golden and firm. Cook in batches until all the batter is used.

Stir together sauce ingredients. Serve warm.

Note. If you don’t have chickpea or garbanzo bean flour on hand all-purpose flour will work as a substitute.