Zucchini Chips!

So I've dropped off. I know. Working is hard, you guys. America should take a cue from France and cut the work week down to 35 hours. Geez. But anyway, I'm a real lawyer, and I got a real job, and for that (and the paycheck) I am thankful. However, I do have several food pictures I've taken that I really need to unload.

After several views and reviews of zucchini chips on Pinterest, I splurged on some of these vegetables at Aldi. You have to buy them in a 3-pack there, so I needed to find another good use for them besides the average curry or pasta. I liked the recipe from this blog the best, and so I began...

Needless to say, I did not follow directions exactly... and thus I regretted slightly that my chips were very thin. Most recipes I read recommended cutting the zucchini into quarter inch slices, but I got fancy with my mandolin (having neglected it all too often) and sliced them into tiny slivers. This made them into delicious crunchy chips, but at the same time I would've liked to remember that these were actually zucchinis that I was eating. They were beautiful nonetheless:

Zucchini Chips
- 2 medium sized zucchinis
- milk
- Italian bread crumbs
- Parmesan cheese
- Salt and Pepper, obvi
- dash of red pepper, if you so desire.

Preheat the oven to 425.

So to begin, you slice two medium zucchinis into rounds about a quarter inch thick. Or set your mandolin to your desired setting. While I chose very thin, I now think I'd recommend just thin or wider.

Combine about a half a cup of bread crumbs with two tablespoons of Parmesan. Then add salt, pepper, and a pinch of red pepper... until you like the way the seasoning of the crumbs tastes.

Prepare your wire racks. I set two of them on a backing sheet and sprayed them with olive oil.

Once you have your slices of zucchini chips ready, dip them in milk in a shallow dish. Then immediately dredge them in the bread crumb mixture. I attempted to do several at a time and it worked out for the most part. I got a lot of the milk-crumb mixture stuck to my hands so I had to wash them multiple times. Place the coated slices on the wire racks and you are ready to bake them. I'd recommend 20 minutes for these thin chips, but if you are cooking quarter inch slices, keep the zucchini chips in there for about 30 minutes. But watch them! We're going for a golden brown.

Love my gadgets

 

 

And then, because we were being healthy and all... I dipped them in ranch.

Roasted Vegetables

You can make anything more delicious by roasting it. Even cabbage. It costs like 57 cents at Walmart. I tried to follow Martha Stewart's recipe for roasted cabbage wedges, however, I was in a bit of a hurry hungry. So I cranked up the oven a bit, like maybe 25 degrees extra, so it took less time. They are sweet and crunchy, and the burnt bits are the best. You can eat them like candy, for dessert. And sometimes, when you aren't finished cooking the cabbage but you are finished with the main course, you have to eat them for dessert.

Looks just like Martha's pics- check it out.

How to roast cabbage:
enough for 4 people (or 2 very hungry people)

• 1 head of cabbage
• olive oil
• salt
• cracked black pepper
• garlic powder or garlic salt (optional)

- Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees
- Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil if you like easy clean-up.
- Spray aluminum with non-stick spray of your choosing (I use spray olive oil).
- Cut cabbage into whole round pieces, with stem in tact, less than an inch in width (3/4")
- Place on the baking sheet and brush pieces with olive oil.
- Throw loose leaves of cabbage on there too (they get the crispiest)
- Sprinkle salt and cracked black pepper over cabbage, and garlic salt/powder if you desire.
- This is where you must eyeball it. Bake for approximately 30 minutes. But I'd check it occasionally.
- It is done when there are some blackened pieces, some golden pieces, and the stem is soft. It shouldn't look greasy.

Like this.

Furthermore, you can roast broccoli. And potatoes (obviously). If you're feeling fancy, you can toss on some balsamic vinegar in the last five minutes... Yeah, think about it.

Broccoli doesn't take as long. I break it up into little pieces, despite what the Pioneer Woman says.
These taste like little popcorns.