Last month I was in Paxos, a tiny Greek Island just one hour from Corfu. It was the most peaceful and beautiful of places with clear blue water and a choice of wonderful beaches. What I particularly liked about Paxos is that it is not full of package holiday resorts. In fact, it is mostly made up of villas and little apartments filling the tiny villages. We stayed in the smallest, yet most beautiful, of villages, Loggos/Longos and it was fantastic! I loved the way we had our own kind of DIY relaxing beach holiday. We had the ease of being able to switch off completely and walk to the beach and restaurants or we could travel a little further to explore other beaches and villages. It was perfect and I couldn’t recommend it enough!
Of course, the food was also a major highlight of the trip! I always feel like Greek food gets a little negative press. Yes we ate the most succulent Gyros with crispy fries and tzatziki but it is a little more than that. One night we had spit roast lamb that was absolutely delicious. Another night I enjoyed a plate piled high with wood-fired lamb chops but it is not just meat. In fact, Paxos serves some of the freshest fish I have eaten. I enjoyed whole grilled squid, octopus carpaccio and salad, seabass, salted anchovies and all served with tomatoes soaked in olive oil and plenty of feta and olives! It is simple but when taking the freshest and best quality of ingredients you can create some wonderful food!
One thing that was always on the menu and could be part of a Mezze with some Taramasalata and Briam was these Kolokithokeftedes (Greek Fried Courgette Balls). We had these for the first time at another of our favourite restaurants, Vassilis, and I loved biting into these little crispy balls to taste the courgette and a hint of feta. I add some parsley and dill to mine to add a little freshness to it. They are incredibly easy to make and the perfect side to add to any summer evening sat outside enjoying the warm weather!
Serve with some Tzatziki on the side.
- 2 or 3 large courgettes
- 2 eggs (beaten)
- 100g plain white flour
- 70g dried breadcrumbs
- 50g feta (crumbled)
- Small bunch fresh parsley and dill (finely chopped)
- 2 spring onions (finely sliced)
- 1 tbpsn dried oregano
- Olive oil
- Salt/ black pepper
- Grate the courgettes and then leave them in a colander for at least 1 hour (preferably 3 hours or overnight) to drain.
- Give the courgettes a good squeeze to make sure all the water is gone. Then add the courgettes to a large mixing bowl.
- In the mixing bowl add the feta, herbs, spring onions, breadcrumbs, flour and eggs and a pinch of salt and pepper. Mix well with the courgettes so that everything is well combined. The mixture should be like a dough and not too wet. If it is too wet to handle then add more flour.
- Take about 1 and half tbspn size of the mixture and roll into ball. Repeat with the rest of the mixture.
- Heat a good glug of olive oil in a large frying pan. Once hot add the courgette balls. You will need to do this in batches. Cook on each side for 2-3 mins or until they are a nice golden colour. Keep warm in the oven while you make the rest and then serve immediately with a Tzatziki!
Leave a Reply