© David Loftus

ricotta fritters with tomato sauce and courgette salad

method

SERVES 4 | 408 CALORIES

Ingredients out • Kettle boiled • Large frying pan, medium heat • Large casserole pan, low heat • Food processor (fine grater)

START COOKING
Put the porcini into a mug and cover with boiling water • Crack the egg into a mixing bowl, add the ricotta, finely grate in ¼ of the nutmeg, the lemon zest and Parmesan, add the flour, then beat together • Put 1 tablespoon of olive oil into the frying pan, then use a tablespoon to spoon in 8 large dollops of the mixture, turning carefully when nice and golden

Put the anchovies (if using) and 1 tablespoon of olive oil into the casserole pan, crumble in the dried chilli, and squash in the unpeeled garlic through a garlic crusher • Finely chop and add the porcini with half their soaking water and the passata, season with salt and pepper and bring to the boil • Squash and add the olives, discarding the stones • Pick and reserve a few basil leaves, then chop the rest and add to the sauce

Grate the courgettes in the processor (you could use a box grater here) and tip into a bowl with a pinch of salt and pepper, the juice of the zested lemon and the extra virgin olive oil • Finely chop and add the chilli and the top leafy half of the mint, then toss together • Place the fritters on top of the sauce, then scatter over the reserved basil leaves, drizzle with balsamic and serve with lemon wedges

serves:

ingredients

Sauce
25g dried porcini mushrooms
optional: 4 anchovy fillets
1 dried red chilli
2 cloves of garlic
700g passata
8 black olives (stone in)
½ a bunch of fresh basil

Fritters
1 large egg
400g ricotta cheese
1 whole nutmeg, for grating
1 lemon
40g Parmesan cheese
1 heaped tbsp plain flour
olive oil
balsamic vinegar

Salad
400g firm green or yellow baby courgettes
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 fresh red chilli
½ a bunch of fresh mint
1 lemon