Happy Father’s Day!
We held a special Father’s Day barbecue and pool party to celebrate the glories of the garden and the brilliant summer day! And, for my family, it wouldn’t be a celebration without lots of red wine, lots of family and friends, and lots and lots of food.
The Menu:
and, of course…. ZUCCHINI!
As I was showing off my garden to arriving guests, we discovered quite a few zucchinis tucked away, so there would be zucchini for dinner! I like to use the deep fryer in the outdoor kitchen, so fried zucchini seemed to be a good choice, and a good chance to use up quite a few of them.
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Yes, I know. It looks like quite an extensive menu, and an expensive one. My family is typical of so many others — we have adults with sophisticated palates, children not-yet-ready for spicy foods, men who like grilled meat and vegetarians who don’t. It can get complicated cooking to please everyone in this crowd. But, with careful planning, this meal was both simple and easily affordable.
Fried Zucchini with Spicy Dipping Sauce
Ingredients
unbleached flour for dredging zucchini
3 eggs
1 cup toasted Italian breadcrumbs
Kosher salt
1 Tbl paprika (I used smoked paprika)
3-4 medium zucchini, trimmed and cut lengthwise into wedges
There really isn’t much of a recipe for this. I sometimes have unseasoned bread crumbs on hand, so I season them, depending on my mood — most often with Italian seasoning, paprika and Parmesan cheese (sound familiar?). Panko bread crumbs may also be used, if you want the fried zucchini to be extra crunchy.
Ingredients
Slice up the zucchini and put in a large bowl. Season with salt and dredge with flour. I use a sieve, to coat lightly and evenly.
Whisk eggs with a splash of cold water.
Combine breadcrumbs, seasonings (if using plain breadcrumbs) and Parmesan.
Dip flour-coated zucchini into the eggs, and then into the breadcrumb mixture. Roll them around in the breadcrumbs until they are coated on all sides. Transfer them, into a single layer, onto a platter or baking sheet.
Fry the zucchini, in small batches, at 350 degrees F. Drain on paper towels. Sprinkle them, while they are warm, with paprika and a little salt. Serve immediately.