A PLATEFUL OF SUNSHINE | Sharon Henry
(this article has been taken from Breeze 4 e-magazine)
We love our comfort food here on St Helena, there’s plo, fishcakes, cabbage do-down, bread ‘n’ dance… and pumpkin fritters. A deliciously scrummy snack or dessert which also teams up perfectly with tea.
On St Helena we say ‘fratters’ not ‘fritters,’ it’s a Saint speak thing. Like elsewhere some say ‘to-may-toe,’ others say ‘to-mar-toe’!
This pumpkin fritters recipe is ideal when pumpkins are in season. It also comes in handy for discarded innards of carved Halloween heads, and for those simply wanting a sweet taste of St Helena.
There are many versions of pumpkin fritter recipes which are especially popular in South Africa and the Caribbean. What sets St Helena’s apart is a slight difference in method and the addition of dried fruit.
These fritters (fratters) are quick and easy to make and if the batter has a good ‘dropping’ consistency you can’t go wrong. They are not super healthy but surely the high pumpkin content can be added toward our five-a-day quota?
Enjoy!
St Helena Pumpkin Fritters Recipe (yields 18)

Ingredients for St Helena Pumpkin Fritters
Ingredients:
900 g (2 lb) pumpkin
170g (6oz) sugar
225g (8oz) plain flour
1 egg
2 tsp baking powder
1 level tsp nutmeg
1 level tsp mixed spice
57g (2 oz) dried fruit

St Helena Pumpkin Fritters recipe – boiling the pumpkin.
St Helena Pumpkin Fritters – Method:
Boil, drain and mash pumpkin.

St Helena Pumpkin Fritters recipe – weighing sugar and mashing the pumpkin.
Stir in the sugar whilst pumpkin is still hot.

St Helena Pumpkin Fritters recipe – adding sugar to the mashed pumpkin.

St Helena Pumpkin Fritters recipe – stirring the sugar in to the pumpkin mix.
Let cool then sieve in flour, baking powder and spices and add fruit and egg to the mixture.

St Helena Pumpkin Fritters recipe – adding flour, baking powder and spices to the pumpkin mix.

St Helena Pumpkin Fritters recipe – adding dried mixed fruit.
Combine all the ingredients until you have a smooth batter.
The consistency should be firm, not runny.
If the pumpkin mixture is too watery, add a little extra flour.
Heat oil in a medium sized pan and shallow fry spoonfuls of batter until both sides are golden brown and crispy on the outside.
Approximately 2 minutes each side.

Pumpkin Fritters in the frying pan.

St Helena Pumpkin Fritters recipe – we’ve reached that perfect golden colour.
Drain on kitchen paper and serve hot, these are particularly moreish straight from the pan!

Pumpkin Fritters from St Helena, ready to eat.
My grandma makes these all the time. They are amazing!
Totally agree with you Megan – they are delicious! Bet your grandma’s a popular lady when she cooking up these sweet treats! Is she St Helenian?
Very moorish, Megan. If we make a big batch to last a few days they always seem to disappear in half the time 🙂
Thanks Sharon,
My Jeannie Still cooks from the ST Helena recipe book she got on one of her visits to Ascension. Sadly she never got to St Helena but enjoyed Phyllis and Junior’s recipes at the Two Boats mess.
Lovely idea to publish like this.
Thanks chris – we reckon you sampled the best at the hands of Phyllis and Junior. And, oh that St Helena cook book is a treasure, full of lovely comfort food.
Lovely my lovely mom was from st Helena & as kids she used to make these pumpkin fritters lovely memories & now iv got the recipe again Thank you ( another part of her island to hold) Di x
Wow that’s lovely to hear Di, it’s wonderful how food can connect you to a place (and people). Hope your ‘fratter’s turn out as you remembered them. 🙂