Think corn fritters with bells on. Bell peppers to be precise. They make for a special but easy to prepare lunch or they can contribute to a Mexican inspired feast. The fritters are egg and dairy free, so suitable for vegans as well as vegetarians.
If using corn cobs, cook them in boiling water for ten minutes. Remove from the water and allow to cool and dry off a bit. Shuck the kernels off the cob with a knife.
2 large corn on the cobs
Whilst the cobs are cooking. Place all of the dry ingredients into a bowl. Make a well in the centre and pour the milk into the middle. Mix well, stirring from the inside out. Add the garlic and onions. Leave for a few minutes so that the polenta can soak up the liquid.
30 g wholemeal flour, 50 g fine polenta, ½ tsp sea salt, ½ tsp ground cumin, ¾ tsp chipotle chilli flakes, ½ tsp baking powder, 150 ml milk of your choice, 1 clove garlic, 2 spring onions (scallions)
Cut the peppers into rings - about 1 cm thick. You should get ten. Remove any seeds.
2 large bell peppers
Stir the sweetcorn into the batter.
Heat a large non-stick frying pan to a medium heat. Add a little of the oil. Place as many of the peppers rings as can fit into the pan. Spoon a tenth of the batter into each ring, packing it in as tight as you can. Fry for four minutes. Flip the fritters over and fry for a further four minutes.
Add more oil if necessary and repeat the process until all of the rings and batter are used up. You might not need to use all of the oil, it rather depends on how non-stick your frying pan is.
Serve warm with any or all of the following: salad, guacamole, pickled cucumbers, tomato salsa, lime wedges, tortillas, marinaded and fried tofu, feta cheese, sour cream or refried beans.
Notes
Number of people served really depends on what sort of meal you're having. You could have 2 ½ each for a lunch of four, two each as a side for five or one each for ten if it's part of a larger feast.You can substitute wholemeal flour for the polenta, but you may not need to use as much milk. Polenta is more absorbent than flour.Either fry any leftover bits of pepper alongside the fritters or add them to a salad to serve alongside.Please note: calories and other nutritional information are per serving. They're approximate and will depend on serving size and exact ingredients used.