Delicious Delights: Zucchini Fries & Corn Ribs with Queso Fresco

The following recipes are from My Regenerative Kitchen by Camilla Marcus. They have been adapted for the web.

Zucchini Fries

Makes 2 to 4 servings

This recipe is a wonderful vessel for leftover pieces of vegetables, and offers a healthier alternative to traditional fries, with an added crunch from the panko. You can also forgo the breadcrumbs and just use oat or rice flour, which will give the vegetables a thin, crispy skin. I love to serve this with sheep’s milk yogurt or coconut yogurt topped with a tablespoon of salsa verde for an herbaceous dipping.

• 1 zucchini
• 1/2 cup (46 g) oat or rice flour
• 1 large egg
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1/2 cup (25 g) panko or homemade breadcrumbs
• 1/2 cup (120 ml) avocado oil

Trim the stem end off the zucchini and cut it in half crosswise. Stand each zucchini half up and slice vertically into 1/4-inch-thick pieces.

Stack the pieces, flat side down, then slice into 1/4-inchthick fry-shaped batons. You should have about 18 zucchini fries in total.

Make a breading station by setting up three separate shallow bowls and a rimmed baking sheet with a rack on top. Put the flour in one bowl. In the next, whisk the egg and season with salt and pepper. Put the breadcrumbs in the third bowl. Working with one piece of zucchini at a time, first coat the zucchini in the flour, then the egg, and lastly the breadcrumbs. Place the breaded zucchini on one half of the rack until all the breading is complete and you are ready to fry.

In a cast-iron skillet or other heavy-bottomed skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat until shimmering but not smoking. Gently fry the zucchini in batches, so as to avoid crowding the pan, flipping them over so all sides become golden brown, 3 to 5 minutes.

Once they are fully cooked, transfer the fries to the other half of the wire rack to drain. Immediately sprinkle with salt and serve hot.

PRO TIP: You can swap the zucchini for eggplant, sweet potato, or squash, as they share high nutrient density and similar creamy texture.

Corn Ribs with Queso Fresco and Espelette Pepper

Makes 4 to 6 servings

• 4 ears sweet corn
• 2 to 3 cups (480 to 720 ml) avocado oil or other neutral oil, for frying
• Sea salt
• Ground Espelette pepper
• 6 ounces (170 g) queso fresco, finely crumbled
• 1/4 cup (10 g) fresh mint or shiso leaves, cut into chiffonade

This recipe uses every part of the corn from husk to cob. The process takes hardly any time at all, and the dish can serve as an easy snack or side dish.

I often call for Espelette pepper, an ingredient common in French cooking. I fell in love with a chili powder called Piment d’Ville, made from Espelette peppers grown regeneratively in California by the female-run Boonville Barn Collective. I will never forget the day that I got a handwritten letter from Krissy Scommegna, co-owner and founder of the collective, sharing the progressive practices used on her land in Anderson Valley and their unique position as one of the few California farms growing chilis at scale with this level of quality and sustainability. It took just one taste for Piment d’Ville to become a staple in my kitchen and cooking.

Remove the corn from their husks. You can char the husks on your stovetop over an open flame for decorative plating, or compost them.

Remove and compost the corn silk. Cut or manually break each ear of corn in half, then cut each half into quarters lengthwise, keeping the cores intact for each piece. The easiest way to do this is to stand each half cob up on your cutting board and cut down through the middle core, then lay each of those halves flat side down and cut in half again through the core to end up with four rib-looking pieces. You will have 32 ribs when finished.

In a deep pan, heat the oil over medium-high heat until it shimmers. Using tongs, carefully place the corn rib pieces, 4 to 6 at a time, into the oil to fry. They should immediately sizzle when they land; if not, your oil is not hot enough.

If the ribs are not totally submerged in the oil, flip each piece as they cook. When the ribs are slightly browned, transfer them to a rack over a rimmed baking sheet to drain, then season immediately with salt and Espelette pepper. Repeat with the remaining ribs until all of them have been cooked and seasoned.

Place the corn ribs on a serving plate or bowl (lined with charred corn husks, if using), sprinkle the queso fresco over the top, and finish with the herbs.

PRO TIP: To chiffonade the herbs, roll a stack of the leaves and then slice thinly on a diagonal.

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