Vegan Pumpkin Fritters (Gluten Free)

These crispy and delicious Caribbean style pumpkin fritters are the perfect way to start the day. They are free from gluten, vegan friendly and make the perfect seasonal appetizer.

Fritters are so incredibly tasty and not to mention so easy to whip up a batch. In less than 20 minutes, with a bit of patience and precision you will be eating these fritters.

They are so nice that I won't even judge you for not sharing them with your loved ones.

What are fritters?

In short, fritters are portions of dough/batter that is primary made of flour, liquid (milk/water) and sometimes egg is including depending on the country/regions cuisine. The dough/batter is typically fried or even baked in the oven.

There are different variations of fritters - sweet and savoury. Sweet fritters are made with sugar and fruit is added and savoury can consist of meat (fish, chicken etc..) and vegetables a long with herbs and spices.

The shape/appearance can vary with some looking like pancakes while others look like balls or mini doughnuts.

Caribbean fritters

Just like other corners of the globe, the Caribbean pretty much holds it own in respect to fritters.

We have our own variety of fritters some of these are; Haitian accra, frituras de malanga, Saltfish Fritters, Conch Fritters, Banana Fritters and Shrimp Fritters just to name a few.

For the most part the Caribbean fritter(s) doesn't really dependent on eggs. Granted some variation such the frituras de malanga and Conch fritters may include it but the others variations shy away from using eggs.

Also the shape of the saltfish and banana fritters are more oblong in shape, not circular nor round and more or less flat. It's very easy to identity Caribbean fritters, particularly the aforementioned.

Anyway, let's talk about the recipe to hand, these vegan pumpkin fritters are made with calabaza pumpkin which is not the same as the Western sugar pumpkin that is used in the UK and North America.

If you want to make these fritters like an islander then the type of pumpkin that you are using is very distinguishable  and unique to this recipe.

Also, you will want to steam the pumpkin first of all before mashing it into a puree. It's better to steam it rather than boil it because the nutrients are intact and steaming lessens the chance of excess water absorption.

I don't own a steamer nor do I have a steaming basket, so I will show you my make shift DIY stove top steaming setup.

Steaming the pumpkin

• Fill a medium sized saucepan by ⅓ with water and bring to the boil.
• Rest the mesh strainer over the water (the strainer needs to fit the size of the saucepan to work).
• Cover the saucepan with a lid, reduce the flame to medium and cook until the pumpkin is soft and tender (this will take several minutes).
• Allow the pumpkin to cool completely before transferring it to a medium bowl

• Use an immersion stick blender or potato masher to mash/puree the pumpkin.
• Add the spices - nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, along with the coconut sugar, vanilla and pink salt.
• Gradually add the flour, stir then add the milk/water until the batter is formed (it shouldn't be too thick nor too thin)**make sure to do this by hand with a spoon/whisk.. and add more liquid if you need to (a tablespoon at a time).
• Add enough oil just enough to cover the bottom of a skillet and allow it to heat through.
• Add the desired amount of batter you need in portions to the skillet.
• Cook until both sides are brown
• Place the fritters on a piece of kitchen towel on a cooling rack and repeat the same steps with the rest of the batter.

Can you make this recipe without using gluten free flour?

Yes, if you are Caribbean and don't suffer from gluten/wheat intolerance then by all means use spelt or another wholesome flour instead.

Can you freeze these fritters?

No, it's best to them straight away or without freezing them. They don't hold up very well after freezing/defrosting.

Help, I added too much/little flour?

If you have added too much flour, you can salvage the batter by adding a splash of milk or water. If your batter is too loose or runny simply add a little flour at a time until the desired texture is met.

Is there an alternative to calabaza pumpkin?

The western pumpkin doesn't taste the same, me personally I would use butternut squash if you can't obtain that specific pumpkin.

How do you make the fritters less oily?

Growing up both my grandmother and mother used very little oil to make any type of fritters. Here are some things you can do to limit the amount of oil used and how to prevent the fritters from being oily.

• Control the quantity of oil that is used by only using just enough to cover the bottom of the batter.
• Make your fritters in small batches because you can rotate/move the skillet side to side in order to cook the fritters without additional oil or over crowding the pan.
• Make sure the oil is hot before adding any batter. Cold batter will absorb more oil and make the batter stick.
• Place your fritters, once cooked on a kitchen towel on top of a cooling rack so they don't sweat/absorb more oil while being left to rest.

Notes and tips

• The amount of fritters you make will vary according to size. This batch made 10 big fritters in total.
• Make sure the oil is hot before adding your batter or it will stick to the pan.
• Make whatever size fritters you prefer, some people make small ones or big ones (mine are big).
• Try not to make the fritters round and chunky like pancakes. They should be slightly oblong and more on the flat side.
• Use an egg lifter to turn the fritters over.
• As you know I don't do deep frying, only use enough oil to cover the base of the fritters. Less is more, add a splash more of oil if needed.
• Blot off any excess oil with kitchen towel.
• For best results use an immersion stick blender to make the batter extra smooth and free from random pumpkin pieces.

Other vegan pumpkin recipe to try

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Vegan Pumpkin Fritters

Learn how to make this amazing Caribbean style pumpkin fritters that are perfect for the fall

5 from 10 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Appetiser

Cuisine: Caribbean

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 50 minutes

Servings: 4 people

Calories: 203kcal

Author: Charla

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 cups pumpkin cut into small pieces
• ▢ 1 ½ cups gluten free flour I used Bob Red Mills 1 to 1 baking flour
• ▢ ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ▢ ½ teaspoon nutmeg
• ▢ ½ teaspoon ginger
• ▢ ⅛ teaspoon cloves optional
• ▢ 1 teaspoon vanilla
• ▢ ¼ pink salt
• ▢ ¼ cup coconut sugar
• ▢ ⅓ cup almond milk or water

Instructions

• Fill a medium sized saucepan by ⅓ with water and bring to the boil.
• Rest the mesh strainer over the water (the strainer needs to fit the size of the saucepan to work). 
• Cover the saucepan with a lid, reduce the flame to medium and cook until the pumpkin is soft and tender (this will take several minutes).
• Allow the pumpkin to cool completely before transferring it to a medium bowl.
• Use an immersion stick blender or potato masher to mash/puree the pumpkin.
• Add the spices - nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, ginger, along with the coconut sugar, vanilla and pink salt.
• Gradually add the flour, stir then add the milk/water until the batter is formed (it shouldn't be too thick nor too thin)**make sure to do this by hand with a spoon/whisk.. and add more liquid if you need to (a tablespoon at a time).
• Add enough oil just enough to cover the bottom of a skillet and allow it to heat through.
• Add the desired amount of batter you need in portions to the skillet.
• Cook until both sides are brown.
•  Place the fritters on a piece of kitchen towel on a cooling rack and repeat the same steps with the rest of the batter.

Notes

• The amount of fritters you make will vary according to size. This batch made 10 big fritters in total.
• Make sure the oil is hot before adding your batter or it will stick to the pan.
• Make whatever size fritters you prefer, some people make small ones or big ones (mine are big).
• Try not to make the fritters round and chunky like pancakes. They should be slightly oblong and more on the flat side.
• Use an egg lifter to turn the fritters over.
• As you know I don't do deep frying, only use enough oil to cover the base of the fritters. Less is more, add a splash more of oil if needed.
• Blot off any excess oil with kitchen towel.
• For best results use an immersion stick blender to make the batter extra smooth and free from random pumpkin pieces.

Nutrition

Calories: 203kcal | Carbohydrates: 46g | Protein: 5g | Fat: 2g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 20mg | Potassium: 197mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 10g | Vitamin A: 4938IU | Vitamin C: 5mg | Calcium: 45mg | Iron: 2mg

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