Magazine Meal 3

The last meal in my week of magazine testing - what to choose...what to choose?

Torn between going all out with an indulgent and time-consuming recipe or a light meal thrown together in a jiffy (leaving time to enjoy what was left of the evening sun) I opted for a recipe from July's Weight Watchers Magazine that was sin-free, simple to prepare but also promised on flavour; result!

The recipe under scrutiny this time was actually from a little book entitled 'Summer Sizzlers' given away with the magazine; also included in the book were ricotta stuffed mushrooms, bulgar wheat pilaff and broad bean and leek tortilla, to name but 3.

Recipe:
Chilli Corn Fritters from 'Summer Sizzlers' courtesy of Weight Watchers
(Serves 4 as a starter, 2 as a main)

50g polenta
200g sweetcorn (I used frozen and defrosted them before use)
1/2 - 1 tsp crushed chillies
3 tbl sp fresh coriander, chopped
1 tbl sp thai green curry paste
1 tbl sp fish sauce (I used wheat free tamari instead)
1 egg
low fat cooking spray

1. Place all the ingredients except the low fat spray in a bowl, and combine well. The mixture will be quite runny (adjust the amount of chillies used depending on how spicy you like your food).
2. Spray a non-stick frying pan with the low fat cooking spray and heat to a medium temperature. Use your hands to form the corn mixture into eight balls and flatten into cake shapes.
3. Cook for about 2 minutes on each side until cooked through and golden. You may find this easier to do in two batches. Serve immediately.

I served the fritters with broccoli stir fried in vegetable oil with slithers of garlic and a few crushed chilli flakes. For a more substantial meal cooked brown rice could also be added to the pan with the broccoli for a tasty side dish.

Now, you do have to watch out with some thai curry pastes as many contain fish sauce and/or shrimp paste, as standard. I used Suree Brand Thai Yellow Curry Paste from my local deli but have also found similar veggie pastes in major supermarkets...just be sure to read the label or even make your own if you have the time and energy after a day at work.

The fritters were spiced to the point of lip-tingling but balanced delightfully with the sweet 'pop' of the corn kernels; the salty kick of the tamari provided a needed savory note that made these little bites addictive. It was certainly a good thing that the entire batch was a mere 8 (Weight Watchers) points but truly a bad thing that I had to share them!

I hope that from this post and the two that preceded it you can see that there are some damn good eats to be had out there on the magazine stands of your local shop or supermarket and that they can be slotted into the weekday just as easily as a bowl of pasta or cheese on toast but with a much higher return!