Never again suffer the dread of being inundated with zucchini every summer -- just turn them into delicious, healthy fries! You'll never again be caught staring at a huge green squash and wondering how you can possibly eat it all; instead, you'll be trying to stop yourself from eating it all in one sitting.
"I'm a firm believer that if you bread something, it's almost always more delicious," laughs Sarah Carey, editor of Everyday Food magazine. "And in the case of zucchini, I can pretty much guarantee that it is."
Watch Carey prepare zucchini fries in the video below, then give it a try yourself. Summer can't arrive fast enough!
Vegetarian baked panko parmesan crusted zucchini friesPreparation Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 35 minutes
Serves: 4
Ingredients2 large zucchini, cut into spears about 3 inches (7.6 centimeters) long
1 large egg white
1-1/2 cups panko (light, flaky, Japanese bread crumbs)
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1-1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning or oregano
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3/4 teaspoon coarse salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
Nonstick cooking spray
Directions1) Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit (218.3 degrees Celsius), with one baking rack one-third of the way from the top of the oven and another about two-thirds of the way down.
2) Drop egg white into medium-sized bowl.
3) In a shallow dish, combine the six dry ingredients: panko, cheese, seasoning, cayenne, salt, and pepper.
4) Dip zucchini spears, one at a time, first in egg white then in dry mixture.
5) Set thoroughly coated spears onto baking sheet(s) treated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake 10 minutes, then turn zucchini over and switch baking racks (if two are being used). Bake another 10 minutes, until zucchini coating is crispy and golden brown.
Squeeze a little lemon juice onto the fries, and serve garnished with lemon wedges.
For a thicker coating, repeat step #4. Consider using the entire egg as the "sticky" ingredient instead of just the white -- or forego the egg completely and use olive oil.
