Southern Fried Squash Patties

It’s sooooooo hot outside.

We are already facing a heat index of 111 degrees and it’s EARLY June! I can’t take this heat. I just can’t. Take. It.

When it’s this hot outside, you don’t really want to eat anything ever. EVER. Food is the last thing on your mind. Icy cold places are the only things on your mind.

When you finally work up the courage to eat something, it is usually a salad or a sandwich or something super light so you don’t get bogged down. Every now and then, however, you want something more. Something fatty. Something juicy. Something fried.

I had picked up these beautiful yellow & crookneck squashes from the farmer’s market this weekend and needed to cook something. I remembered how my mom used to make these silver-dollar sized patties out of yellow squash in the summer for dinner. I loved those when I was a kid.

I couldn’t find quite the same recipe as hers (I guess I could’ve just asked!) so I combined a couple of recipes I found online. They turned out wonderfully! Even picky eaters will love these little yellow patties of heaven. When I was a kid, I loathed squash…but I loved these patties! My mom also would make patties out of tinned tuna, but that’s another story for another day….

Southern Fried Squash Patties

• 2 lbs. yellow squash, partially peeled
• 1 small onion, diced
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 TBS. sugar
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/8 tsp. freshly ground pepper

1. Finely chop the partially peeled yellow squash. Throw the chopped squash and onions into a microwavable-safe bowl and microwave for about 10-15 minutes until squash and onion are soft and tender. Drain off excess water.
2. Add remaining ingredients to the bowl and stir to combine.
3. Heat about 1/4 cup vegetable oil (about a 1/2″ of oil in the bottom of a pan) in a large, deep skillet over medium high heat. Drop squash mixture by the spoonful in hot oil and cook until browned on one side (about 2-3 minutes).
4. Flip squash patties and cook until browned on the other side, another 1-2 minutes. Place cooked patties on a paper-towel lined plate or a grate over paper towels to drain off extra grease. Serve with your favorite condiments.

These patties were a bit sweet when I made them, so the recipe above has about half the amount of sugar in it. I like to cut my squash a little on the chunky side so you get those juicy chunks of squash in each patty. I served this classic Southern side dish with a Mississippi Roast (I’m sure you’ve seen all of those recipe posts on Facebook about that roast) and it was one of my favorite meals that I’ve eaten this summer! Enjoy 🙂

-Leen