Leek Fritters w/ Garlic Lemon Cream

So, on one hand, this meal involves frying.  On the other hand, it's vegetarian AND delicious.  I highly recommend the Garlic Lemon Cream dolloped on top--the perfect finishing touch.

An adaptation of this Smitten Kitchen Cookbook recipe can found over at the NY Times.  Here's mine:

INGREDIENTS:
FOR THE FRITTERS:
2 lbs leeks (I used 3 large leeks)*
Pinch or two of salt & pepper
2 scallions, trimmed, halved lengthwise & thinly sliced
1/4 cup flour
1 tsp baking powder
Pinch of cayenne pepper (optional)
1 egg
Vegetable oil, for frying

FOR THE CREAM:
1/2 cup low-fat sour cream
1 lemon (1 Tbsp of the juice & zest from half to whole fruit)
Salt, to taste

*Cut off the dark green (top) portions of the leeks.  Halve lengthwise and then chop.  Place in strainer & rinse well with water, sifting through with your fingers.  (This my personal method of removing the dirt & grit.)

DIRECTIONS:
1. Bring pot of water to a boil, salt, & add leeks; Cook for 3-4 minutes.  Drain & then place in a dishtowel and wring out the extra water.

2. Preheat oven to 200 degrees.  Mix leeks & scallions together in a large bowl.  In a separate bowl, add dry ingredients & whisk together.  Add dry ingredients to leeks and mix.  Add egg & mix--you'll end up with a batter that's ready to fry!

3. Fill a large, heavy skillet with 1/2 to 1-inch of oil and heat over med-high heat until the oil shimmers and a flick of flour into the oil results in sizzling.  Place a paper towel on a plate, and place it next to your stove.  Place a cookie sheet in the oven.  Heap large spoonfuls of the batter into the oil, taking care not to crowd the pan.  Cook ab 3 mins, and then flip and cook another 3 mins.  (You will most likely need to keep an eye on the heat and adjust up or down depending on how quickly your fritters are cooking.)  Drain fritters on paper towel-lined plate, and then transfer to the warm cookie sheet in the oven.  (These will not continue to cook--they'll just keep nice and warm so everyone can eat them at the same time!)

4. For the cream, whisk all the ingredients together.  Serve fritters with a dollop of cream on each.

MAKE IT AGAIN:  I have a confession.  The leeks were running kind of expensive at my local produce store when I went shopping, so I only planned to make them once.  If this happens to you, just supplement with your quickest, cheapest go-to (mine is boxed mac-n-cheese...don't tell anyone!).  If I'd had enough leeks, I would have made a double batch and frozen half of them for the next week, warming them in a 300-350 degree oven until they were crispy and warmed through again.