Greek tomato feta fritters

Quarter small cherry tomatoes; halve larger tomatoes, slice a quarter inch thick and cut across. Transfer with their juice into a measuring cup using a bench scraper, a couple of cups in all.

Add sliced green onion and grate in about half a medium zucchini.

Add a generous amount of kosher salt, a little sugar, black pepper, a few shakes of cayenne and dried oregano; mix and let sit 15 minutes to draw out the liquid.

Stir, then add chopped Italian parsley, mint and basil, and about three ounces of crumbled feta; mix.

Add all-purpose flour and baking powder and mix; add water if too thick or flour if too loose, until relatively loose but holding its shape on a spoon.

Wrap and refrigerate about half an hour, or up to overnight; a long rest may need more flour.

Heat about an inch of oil to 350 degrees over medium-high heat.

Drop in heaping tablespoons of batter, pushing off with a second spoon; press down any that sit high. Reduce the heat to medium.

Fry about two minutes per side until browned, flip, then flip back for about 30 seconds more for extra crispness.

Squeeze lemon over to serve, or serve with a yogurt sauce of yogurt, lemon juice, raw garlic and a shake of cayenne.

Variation: the same method works for any vegetable that cooks in a couple of minutes; blanch harder ones such as green beans or broccoli until just tender, then dice.