Zucchini Pancakes

I am so lucky to have roommates who appreciate food. Last night, Hilary, Zoe and I made a fantastic (and vegetarian) dinner for a couple of friends. We started off with zucchini pancakes, which I had eaten before like breakfast pancakes, but I had never had a savory version. Luckily, the Barefoot Contessa is here to help.

Zucchini Pancakes (from Barefoot Contessa at Home)

2 medium zucchini (about 3/4 pound)
2 tablespoons grated red onion
2 eggs, lightly beaten
6-8 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
unsalted butter and vegetable oil

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Grate the zucchini into a bowl using the large grating side of a box grater (we didn't have this, so we just julienned it very finely) Immediately stir in the onion and eggs. Stir in 6 tablespoons of the flour, the baking powder, salt, and pepper. (If the batter gets too thin from the liquid in the zucchini, add the remaining 2 tablespoons of flour.)
Heat a large (10-12 inch) sauté pan over medium heat and melt 1/2 tablespoon butter and 1/2 tablespoon oil together in the pan. When the butter is hot but not smoking, lower the heat to medium-low and drop heaping soup spoons of batter into the pan. Cook the panckaes about two minutes on each side, until browned. Place the pancakes on a sheet pan and keep warm in the oven. Wipe out the pan with a dry paper towelm add more butter and oil to the pan, and continue to fry the pancakes until all the batter is used. The pancakes can stay warm in the oven for up to 30 minutes. Serve hot.

Makes 10 3-inch pancakes.