Courgette And Feta Flan
There was a great looking recipe for a courgette and cheese loaf knocking about on Facebook. After some of my friends tried it I thought I’d have a go
Now, I get annoyed when some upstart chef takes a classic recipe, usually from culture they don’t understand, and gives us their take. Jamie Oliver did this with Paella. However, the Spanish loved it. Good on you Jamie
However, since – as far as I’m aware – this is not a classic recipe from a village in a hidden mountain valley in the Italian Dolomites, here goes
I’ve used millet flour because it has a wonderfully low glycaemic index. And Feta because I just love it. And mustard and chilli just to liven things up
Courgette And Feta Flan
A light, fluffy protein dish for any season
Ingredients
- 1 large courgette (zucchini) coarsely grated
- 1 tsp salt
- 2-3 eggs
- feta cheese to your taste crumbled
- 2-3 tbsp yoghurt (or milk)
- 1 tbsp light vinegar (optional) commended when using milk rather than yoghurt
- 1-2 tbsp oilive oil
- 1/2 onion
- 1 clove garlic chopped or crushed
- 3-4 tbsp flour (I used milled millet for its low glycaemic index)
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp mustard (I used fermented mustard and green mango Kasundi)
- chilli flakes to taste
Crunchy Breadcrumb Base (optional)
- 1 handful brreadcrumbs (I used dark rye)
- olive oil for frying (optional)
- 1 clove garlic (optional)
Instructions
Prepare the courgettes
- Coarsely grate the courgette(s) by hand or using a mandolin or food processo
- Add salt and massage with your hands for a few seconds
- leave to rest for 15-20 minutes
Make the base (optional)
- Dry toast or fry breadcrumbs in a frying pan with or without garlic until crisp. Set aside
- Lightly oil or butter the bottom and sides of your flan tin and spread the bread-crumbs evenly over the base. Let some stick to the sides if they want to
Make the flan
- soften the onions and garlic without browning in a little oil
- using your hands or a sieve and a wooden spoon squeeze as much of the liquid out of the courgettes as you can
- spearate the egg yolks and whites, making sure there is no yolk or fat of any kind in the egg whites (or they won't whip)
- mix the drained courgettes with all the ingredients except the egg whites
- Add a pinch of salt to the egg-whites and whisk the to soft peaks. Fold into the flan mixture with a large metal spoon or spatula
- Spread over the breadcrumb base (if you;re using them) and bake at 180 degrees C for 30-35mins
- Serve with a couple of nice crisp salads
