Ingredients

  • 4 thick slices stake country bread, crusts removed
  • 1/2 to 1 cup whole milk
  • 2 tbsp. chopped marjoram or oregano
  • 3 tbsp. chopped parsley
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 1 cup ricotta
  • 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1/3 cup finely diced onion
  • 1 or 2 eggs as needed
  • sea salt and pepper
  • olive oil for frying
  • 8 cups cooked winter squash strands, baked at 400 degrees for 45-60 minutes
  • Tomato sauce: Make Deborah's Five-Minute Tomato Sauce or use your own
  • Minced parsley or oregano for garnish

Method

  • Put the bread in a pie plate and pour milk over it. If it's on the soft side, use little milk, if it's hard, use more. While chopping everything else, return to the bread now and then to move it around, squeezing the wet pieces over the drier ones. When all the bread is soft, squeeze out excess milk. Put it in a food processor and pulse just enough to break it up into corse crumbs, then turn it into a bowl.
  • Chop the herbs with the garlic and add them to the bread along with the cheeses, onion, and 1 egg. Season with 1 teaspoon of salt and plenty of pepper. Mix everything together--your hands are the best tool--then fry a little batter in some olive oil until golden and taste it for salt. You'll also be able to tell if it's too dry (add another egg) or too wet (add more bread crumbs). Shape the dough into spheres or ovals, using about 2 teaspoons each.
  • Film a cast-iron or nonstick skillet with olive oil. When hot, add the morsels, taking care not to crowd them, and cook over medium heat, shuffling the pan frequently so that all surfaces brown.
  • Just before serving, drop the baked squash strands into boiling salted water and cook until tender, about 3 to 5 minutes. Strain, then toss with a a little butter or olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
  • To serve, nap each plate with tomato sauce, heap the "spaghetti" over it, add the fritters, and garnish with a little minced parsley.