Baked Zucchini “Zuk” Fries with Greek Yogurt & Sriracha Dipping Sauce

I took a trip to my local farmers market and somehow came home with 3 large bags of zucchini. Can you blame me when they were charging $2.00 for 10 zucchini?  $6.00 later, I had A LOT of zucchini. Time to get creative with an abundance of one product.

“Zuk” (I like to abbreviate) is easy to sneak into most meals from breakfast, through dessert.  You can bake it, stuff it, grill it, saute it.  Can you resist a good “Zuk” bread?  The answer there is, no you can’t.  Add Zuk to soups, stews, stir-fries, omelets, and cookies.  It’s another one of those versatile products.

Why not combine one of my happy craving foods (french fries) with all this Zuk?  It’s not a secret that french fries aren’t the healthiest, so I often make my own.  To offset the unhealthiness, I’ll bake the fries instead of frying them.  Now you see where I’m going with this recipe.  The zucchini stays crisp and fresh, and the garlicky bread crumbs give it a nice crunchy coating.  I paired these zucchini fries with a tangy Greek yogurt Sriracha dipping sauce.  As my mom would say, “to die for!”

Take a hint.  Go to your farmers market, pick up some Zuk, and make these delicious fries.

Ingredients:

• 3 zucchinis, cut into 3″ x 1/2″ sticks
• 2 egg whites
• pinch of salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning
• 1 cup bread crumbs ( I used Contadina bread crumbs with roasted garlic and savory spices)
• 2 tbsp parmesan cheese, finely grated
• olive oil cooking spray
• 6 oz container of 0% fat Greek yogurt
• 2 tbsp Sriracha hot sauce

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Wash and cut the ends off the zucchini.  To chop zucchini into 3″ x 1/2″ sticks, cut each zucchini in half lengthwise, then cut each half into thirds lengthwise.  Then, cut each third in half crosswise.

In a small dish (I like to use a pie plate) beat egg whites and season with a pinch of salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning. In a large zip-lock bag, combine bread crumbs and parmesan cheese.

Prepare a cookie sheet by evenly spraying it with olive oil spray.

Working with a few at a time, dip zucchini into egg white mixture, then place into the zip-lock bag with the bread crumb mixture.  Shake to coat, and place in a single layer onto prepared baking sheet.  Repeat until all zucchini are coated.  Spray zucchini with another layer of olive oil spray.

Bake for 20 minutes until golden and cooked through.

To make the Greek Yogurt and Sriracha Dipping Sauce, simply combine Greek yogurt and Sriracha hot sauce. Mix until well blended.