Meatless Mo...um, Wednesday: Summer Vegetable Corn Cakes

It was a miserable summer (in terms of weather). I won't miss it. And while I am starting to crave cooler weather produce, I had to get in one more summery meal. Using a squash and some onions from Farmhouse Delivery, along with farmer's market okra and peppers, I made myself a short stack of corn cakes for this week's Meatless Monday... which I made on Wednesday instead. (If the goal is to cut out meat once a day, who says it has to be Monday? Although I do like the alliteration.)

These are very chunky corn cakes, kind of like a giant fritter, really (and yes, I am aware they don't contain corn). As usual I used the ingredients I had on hand, but it would be very easy to sub in other vegetables depending on your preferences and what you have available... and to add actual corn to it to make it more of an official corn cake. Keeping the amount of overall veggies to 5 1/2 C + the peppers (which you could omit entirely if you wanted) would maintain the nice chunky texture of these. They are very hearty and filling. I was able to make an entire meal out of 3 of them. Add a salad alongside it to stretch them out for more servings.


Summer Vegetable Corn Cakes
Adpated from this Epicurious recipe

Yield: 8 corn cakes

• grapeseed oil
• 1 C chopped onion
• 1/8 C minced hot peppers
• 2 C chopped summer squash
• 2 1/2 C chopped okra
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1 C fine cornmeal
• 3/4 C milk
• 1 egg
• 1/2 C grated cheddar
• sour cream

1. Heat a large sauté pan over medium heat and add just enough oil to coat the pan.
2. Sauté the onions and peppers until they have softened. Add the squash and okra, adding more oil if necessary to avoid sticking, and sauté until all the vegetables are tender. 
3. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat and let cool until they are no longer steaming.
4. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cornmeal, milk, egg, and cheddar until well-blended.
5. Stir in the vegetables.
6. Heat a griddle over medium heat. Add a dot or two of oil and spread with a paper towel to coat (wadded up, lest you burn your fingers). Spoon the batter onto the griddle to make large patties, about 3 1/2–4 inches across and flatten slightly with the spoon. They should be no thicker than an inch.
7. Cook until they have browned and released from the pan, then flip them over with a spatula. Cook on the other side until browned, then transfer to a plate and cover loosely to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining batter.
8. Serve topped with sour cream.