Zucchini Corn Cakes

Sometime in between picking pounds of figs and buckets of tomatoes, we’ve neglected our zucchini plants.

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I thought they were done, finished for this year, ready to be pulled up and tilled over.

But I thought the same thing about our green beans, and I know where that left me.

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I’m pretty sure that the zucchini is almost finished producing for this year, but I was still left with one giant zucchini on the porch, waiting to be used.

We’ve fried it, roasted it, sauteed it. I’ve shredded it and frozen it for some winter baking. Stuffed it, baked it, and froze it into casseroles for a snowy night.

I was almost out of ideas for zucchini.

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Until I remembered the masa harina I had in the freezer. I’d never made zucchini pancakes and I’ll make any excuse to use masa.

Have you ever used corn flour (masa harina)? I’m not talking about regular cornmeal. This stuff is incredible.

It’s like ground fresh corn tortillas – I’m not sure how else to describe it. Masa just smells like milky sweet corn. It makes perfect homemade tortillas and I knew it would be the best base for a corn pancake.

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The baking powder was a last minute addition to the recipe, but I’m so glad I added it. The batter puffed up just enough to fluff around the chunks of zucchini and sugary corn, giving it a savory pancake feel.

I’m pretty sure I know what I’m making with all the last of our zucchini this summer.

 

Zucchini Corn Cakes

Makes: 10 medium sized corn cakes or 15-20 smaller appetizer sized cakes

Ingredients:

  • kernels from 4 ears of corn, about 1.5-2 cups of fresh corn
  • 1 medium zucchini, diced into 1/2” pieces
  • 1.5 tsp salt
  • .5 tsp pepper
  • 1/2 cup masa harina (corn flour) or finely ground cornmeal
  • 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 3/4 cup milk
  • 1-2 tsp oil

Directions:

  1. In a large bowl, cut the corn kernels from the cob and place into a large bowl.
  2. Stir the corn together with the diced zucchini, salt, pepper, masa harina, and baking powder.
  3. In a small dish, beat the eggs and mix together with the milk.
  4. Stir in the egg mixture into the corn and zucchini and let it sit for 5 minutes.
  5. Heat a skillet over medium and add a tsp or so of oil.
  6. Drop batter into the skillet with a large spoon, 1-2 at a time, and let cook for 3-4 minutes on one side before flipping.
  7. When the cakes look set around the edges, flip over and let the second side cook 1-2 minutes.
  8. Remove from pan and keep warm.
  9. Continue cooking until all the batter is gone.
  10. Serve with salsa, avocado, cheese, or any other topping that sounds good to you!

29 comments

  1. These sounds great!! I am glad to see some summery recipes still :)

    • Thanks Lauren! I’m so ready for fall, but I’ve still got a few summery recipes coming. They won’t stop until the garden does!

  2. Ive never used masa, but i know id love it!!! The cakes look awesome! Theyd make a great app… Or main!

  3. Great end-of-summer recipe!

  4. Given my insane intense, completely inappropriate love of corn…I really need these in my life.

  5. It sounds weird, but when I make corn pancakes like these, I love to top them with butter and syrup. The sweet/savory combo is divine!

  6. These sound delicious!

  7. I love having masa harina on hand, but for some reason, I never thought to use it to make a corncake. (Which is funny because I just made some too and while in the middle thought, crap I only have blue cornmeal, but I could have used masa!)

  8. This looks great! i’ve never cooked zucchini but came across them at green market a few days ago and thought i should make some asap

  9. This looks awesome!! I love zucchini, Brandi! Hope you’re doing well. :) Ready for Nashville?

  10. Omigosh this looks incredible!! I absolutely love zucchini so this looks especially delicious to me! I’ve never made a masa pancake but I’ve had a cornmeal one that was good, but this looks even better!

  11. I love veggie cakes! Yours look and sound amazing! Great way to use zucchini! Enjoy all your fruits and veggies!!! :)

  12. Never ever ever forget about a zucchini! They’ll grow to be 20 pounds ;) I’ve done that too many times myself!

    I absolutely love the idea of using masa harina for this recipe! You are quickly becoming one of my favorite bloggers for dinner ideas! Yay!

  13. Mmmm…What an excellent way to use up all the zucchini I have in my fridge! Yummy! :)

  14. Those corn cakes are amazing! They look like a perfect way to use up some of the veggies sitting in my fridge right now.

  15. What a great way to enjoy the end of summer zucchini and corn – while these are in abundance I run out of ideas too, but I know I will miss them as soon as the cool weather hits. I’ve used masa harina to make corn tortillas and I think it’s also used in chili sometimes as a thickener.

  16. These look delicious! I have wanted to make savory pancakes before but had no clue what to use… Regular batter? Now I have an alternative, thanks for sharing :D

  17. I seriously love little veggie cakes like this!! They are so nice to have to snack on in the fridge :)

  18. I certainly wish I had the problem of buckets of figs and tomatoes!

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