I grew up on Zucchini Fritters made with yellow cornmeal and skillet-fried in hot grease. Fat singing in cast cast-iron skillet is the song of my childhood. My sister and I would eat the fried zucchini as soon as they hit the brown paper bag-lined plate.
These Air Fryer Zucchini Fritters are not good like that — seriously, I am not going to lie and tell you they are. How could they be?
But, these Easy Air Fryer Zucchini Fritters are good in a different way! It’s a similar flavor profile, but with a lot less fat. (Don’t have an air fryer? You can do them in an oven, too.)
This issue also shares
- Best Life Living Tip: Re-entry from Vacation 🛫
- Self-Care Strategy: Put a Sock in It! 🧦
- Ideas and Inspiration: She’s a Harvard Med Psychiatrist, Nutrition Specialist, AND professionally trained Chef.👩🏼🍳
Quick reminder: if you are new here. I’m from a long line of great Southern cooks, a French-trained chef, and a James Beard-award-winning cookbook author. I’ve lost 65 pounds and kept it off for 4+ years. I quit dieting, and it changed my life. You can do it, too!
Good and Good for You™ is my real-life approach to health and wellness. It’s not about weight loss, it’s about health gain.
Read on for more — including Air Fryer Zucchini Fritters. The batter is a snap to toss together. Served with a creamy dipping sauce – or kicked up with Calabrian chili paste — they are a great appetizer, side dish, or vegetarian main.
Best Life Living Tip
This may seem obvious, but it bears repeating.
Day-to-day life and vacation are not the same thing. In Maine, I eat full-fat ice cream every day, in Italy, I go to daily wine tastings, and in France, I eat cheese like it’s my job. (Speaking of France, come with me next summer to Provence! More HERE.)
Balanced mental health can take effort. Changes in schedules, including vacations, can be disturbing to healthy menu choices, exercise routines, alcohol consumption, and so much more.
It’s easy to get off track. The weight starts creeping back, you start having a glass of wine again every night, or find yourself blowing off the morning workouts.
Hey, a little indulgence can be great, but when schedule shifts linger and start affecting healthy habits, it’s time to get back to real day-to-day living.
Day-to-day living is taking care of your body, brain, and spirit. You can do it.
Self-Care Technique
It’s high itch season, especially if you work in the yard or have a garden. Instead of buying an expensive pre-made product to soothe itchy skin, you can simply put instant oatmeal in a clean old sock.
Using instant oatmeal in a sock creates an oatmeal bath, which can soothe itchy or irritated skin.
Oatmeal has moisturizing, soothing, and protective properties. It can help with dryness, itching, inflammation, and even protect against sun damage.
The sock acts as a makeshift strainer, allowing the milky, beneficial properties of the oats to infuse the bathwater without creating a large mess.
- You can reuse the filled sock. After my bath, I’ll put it in a labeled container in the refrigerator and use it two or three days.
- You can also reuse the sock. Discard the spent oats, rinse it, then wash and dry the sock so you can use it again.
Give it a try — it’s a wonderful soak even if you aren’t itchy.
Ideas and Inspiration
Sleep is good for your brain, and brain health is especially important as we age.
Using a device to read can be too much screen time, which can create bad sleep hygiene, late nights, and not enough sleep. To improve my sleep hygiene, I recently picked up This is Your Brain on Food by Dr. Uma Naidoo.
Dr. Naidoo is a Harvard-educated psychiatrist, trained chef, and nutrition specialist. She founded and directs the Nutritional and Lifestyle Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital, the first hospital-based Nutritional Psychiatry Service in the US.
This book is filled with science-backed info about how a sound diet can help better manage or prevent wide range of psychological and cognitive health issues, from ADHD to anxiety and OCD.
Incorporating brain health food into your diet is Good and Good for You™!
Give her a follow on IG at @drumanaidoo and buy This is Your Brain on Food here.
Good and Good for You™Living Spotlight
The update of my first cookbook Bon Appetit, Y’all is full of simple, healthier versions of Southern recipes like this one. Get your copy here.
Excited to celebrate a feature on my personal and published “glow-up” with a favorite source of local news in my hometown, Columbia County Magazine.
It’s the only monthly lifestyle magazine in the Augusta, Georgia area and I am proud to have partnered with them on a giveaway.
You can enter to win this awesome package over on Instagram!
Make it Count
Make it CountYou’re going to love these yummy fritters, and they are only 52 calories each!
The double layer of corn flavor with fresh corn and cornmeal is a great match for the zucchini. Want to learn more about cornmeal? Check out Ground Corn 101.
Thanks so much for reading. Please follow me on IG @virginiawillis for more best life tips, self-care techniques, ideas and inspiration, and healthy recipes.
As long as you’re doing what’s Good and Good for You™ more often than not, you’re on the right track. 🙌🏻 You can do it!
Bon Appétit Y’all!
Virginia Willis
Air Fryer Zucchini Fritters
Ingredients
- Nonstick Cooking spray
- 1 medium zucchini
- 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- 1 ear corn, kernels removed and cob scraped
- 1 large egg lightly beaten
- ½ cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
- 1/3 cup cornmeal
- 1 tablespoon corn starch
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- ¼ teaspoon freshly ground pepper
- Hot sauce or Calabrian chile paste for serving
- Sour cream for serving
- Fresh herbs for serving
Instructions
- Preheat air fryer to 375°F for 10 minutes. Generously coat the fryer basket with cooking spray.
- Meanwhile, grate the zucchini on the large holes of a box grater over a clean kitchen towel set in a bowl. Toss with salt. Set aside while you assemble the remaining ingredients, about 15 minutes.
- Squeeze over the sink to remove as much liquid as possible. Transfer the zucchini to a medium bowl. Add corn, egg, Parmesan, cornmeal, cornstarch, baking powder, garlic powder, and pepper; stir until combined.
- Using a 1-ounce scoop and working in batches if necessary, scoop some of the batter into the palm of your hand and flatten slightly. Arrange them in a single layer in the fryer basket.
- If making in the oven, preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with foil or a nonstick silicone baking sheet. Spray with nonstick spray. Place the patties in a single layer. Bake until golden brown, about 10 minutes.
- Cook until puffed and deep golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Serve with your favorite condiments and dipping sauce.
Nutrition
