Bean and Feta Fritters

When a meat-loving son is his twenties was not only complimentary about these fritters but polished off most of the batch, this cook had to have a little lie down!  The inclusion of the herbs and feta add zing to these tasty fritters. Serve them casually or give them a lift by nestling atop a mesclun salad and serving with a chutney such as Puliyini, a tamarind prune chutney,  and scalloped potatoes.  Use a firm-textured feta, as small dice in these fritters is preferable to grated or crumbled.  Pinto beans look very like kidney beans but are lighter in colour and not as strong in flavour.  Almost any bean can be used for this recipe, though of course the flavour will vary slightly.Makes 6-8 medium-sized fritters. Serves 4.  May be frozen, Recipe doubles well.

3 cups cooked pinto (or other) beans, roughly mashed

1 onion, peeled and finely chopped

¼ cup finely chopped parsley

2 Tbsp fresh pizza thyme (or 1 tsp dried thyme)

1 tsp salt or to taste

1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

120g feta, diced small

1 large egg

oil  to shallow fry

Combine all ingredients except the oil in a medium-sized bowl.

Form into fritters or patties with your hands, according to the size you want and the number of people you are serving.

Heat about 3 Tbsp oil in a heavy-based frying pan (an electric pan is excellent for this).  You will need to add more oil for the next batch.

Fry over a medium heat for 2-3 minutes on each side until golden and cooked through.  Remove from the pan and drain on a kitchen towel. Keep warm until all fritters are cooked.

________________________________