Zucchini Fries

I really, really like mozzarella sticks. When I saw these zucchini fries at Six Sisters I thought they looked like a yummy mozzarella stick-french fry-vegetable hybrid. And they are : )

I made a lot of modifications to the recipe though. I never buy panko bread crumbs. I figure why should I spend money on breadcrumbs when I have perfectly good stale crackers in the pantry. Ok they aren't stale, but they were running up on the expiration date. So I crushed up a bag of Cheez-Its (giving me a cup of finely crushed crackers) and then added about 2 Tbsp of grated parmesan. Make sure to crush them pretty finely if you want them to stick well to the zucchini strips

I followed some of the Sisters' directions; slicing the zucchini like fries, dipping in the egg and then the cracker crumbs. I didn't add the crumbs a little at a time like they suggest though I just had them all in the bowl. The crumbs didn't start to get sticky until the very end, so I think that worked just fine.

I didn't bother spraying the pan since it was already lined with foil. They didn't stick. I did however spray all the fries with cooking spray once they were arranged on the pan. This helps them "fry" without really using oil. I use this trick to fry other foods (like chicken strips). I baked them at 425º for somewhere between 10-15 minutes, but I didn't turn them over. They still turned out nice and crispy.

We ate them with marinara sauce and they were delicious! I felt like I was eating mozzarella sticks, but WAY less calories. Even Thing One liked them and didn't think they tasted like zucchini at all. He liked his dipped in ranch. I will definitely be making these again.

Here's to healthy fries!

-Haley