Southwestern Zucchini Cakes

Ingredients

• 3 medium zucchini, cut into strips approximately 3-4" long
• salt for sprinkling
• 1/2 C gluten free breadcrumbs
• 1/4 C nutritional yeast
• 1 T granulated garlic
• 1 T dried parsley
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 egg, beaten
• Cooking spray, for spraying the air fryer basket
• 3 T olive oil, for brushing

Method

1. Wash and cut zucchini: wash and dry the zucchini.  Cut the zucchini into strips approximately 6-7" in length
2. Place zucchini on paper towels: line a large baking sheet with paper towels and place the cut zucchini in a single layer on it.  Sprinkle salt over the zucchini strips and let them sit for at least 20 minutes to get rid of excess water content.  After 20 minutes, use dry paper towels to dab at the zucchini slightly and soak up the water that has been released.
3. Combine dry ingredients to form breading mixture:  Combine the breadcrumbs, nutritional yeast, granulated garlic, dried parsley and salt together in a mixing bowl.  Mix well until the ingredients are evenly distributed.
4. Dip zucchini in egg:  Place the egg in a small shallow bowl and beat it.  Dip each zucchini stick in the egg, ensuring all sides are covered with egg.
5. Coat the zucchini with the breadcrumb mixture and make sure all the surfaces are coated well.  Repeat until all the zucchini has been breaded.
6. Spray basket with cooking spray and preheat air fryer to 400° for five minutes.
7. Once the air fryer has been preheated, place the maximum number of zucchini sticks you can in one single layer and then brush the sticks with olive oil.
8. Cook the zucchini fries for 15 minutes, turning them over halfway through and brushing the other side with more olive oil.  repeat until you finish cooking all the fries.

 Notes:

You may use either plain gluten free breadcrumbs or gluten free panko breadcrumbs.  Alternatively, if you prefer to keep this low carb, you can use almond flour or ground almonds instead.

I use nutritional yeast to add a "cheesy" taste and color and to keep these fries dairy free.

I like using granulated garlic and dried parsley for and extra kick of flavor.  alternatively, you may use other seasonings such as Italian seasoning, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder or even everything bagel seasoning.

If you want to make this completely egg free, you can use 3 T of aquafaba (the water from soaking chickpeas) or use oil in the place the egg.

I like using extra virgin olive oil, but you may also use another vegetable oil such as avocado oil or sunflower oil if you prefer.

Cook zucchini in one single layer so they have plenty of space to crisp all over (do not stack them on top of each other)  Depending on your air fryer, you may need to do them in more batches.  Simply place the cooked fries aside, and once all the fires are done, reheat them in the air fryer for another five minutes until hot and crispy before serving.

If you wish to store them, place them in layers separated by parchment paper in an airtight container  and freeze for up to three months.  To reheat, thaw for at least two hours and heat in the air fryer for 8 minutes, tossing them halfway through until crisp and hot.

If you don't own an air fryer, place the fries on a parchment lined baking sheet in a single layer.  Brush the tops of the fries with olive oil and bake in a conventional oven at 400° for 20 minutes, flipping them and brushing the other side with more oil halfway through.

Zucchini by Lynn Craig

Back to The Cascading Kitchen