Faux "Fried" Zucchini

It was another hot one here yesterday 106°F we had a couple of cooler days and then wham! back to triple digits, then I hear next week will be 70's. Wacky weather. I took an early morning walk then hit the Farmer's Market, it was beautiful and wasn't that hot yet. The market was packed I think everyone had the same idea, go early to beat the heat. Got some great stuff for the week... onions, peppers and eggplant (will be roasting those this morning), corn, cucumbers, avocado (thinking California Roll Salad), pluots, apples (first chilly morning I'm making my Baked Apple Pancake), and zucchini.

I ran a few errands, came home and turned some of the zucchini into this super yummy lunch...

Shelly's Faux "Fried" Zucchini with High Protein Parmesan Dip

2 Small to Medium Zucchini, sliced (about 28 rounds)
1 Egg, beaten
1/4 cup Multigrain Pancake Mix (I use this)
1/4 cup Crunchy Onions (the green bean casserole kind)
2 Tablespoons Parmesan Cheese, grated
1/4 teaspoon Seasoning Salt
a few twists of Black Pepper

Spray a nonstick baking sheet with Pam cooking spray. Slice zucchini. In a small bowl beat egg. Crush pancake mix, onions, Parmesan and seasonings together in a shallow dish or pie plate. The bottom of a measuring cup works great for crushing.

Dredge zucchini in egg, then in coating, coating both sides. Place on prepared baking sheet.

Bake at 450 for 10 minutes, flip them, then cook 10 minutes more. Serve with Parmesan Dip.

Shelly's High Protein Parmesan Dip

1/2 cup Cottage Cheese
1/4 cup Fage Greek Yogurt (I use plain 2%)
2 Tablespoons of Parmesan Cheese, grated
1/4 teaspoon Oregano
a few twists of Black Pepper
Kosher Salt to taste

Whiz all ingredients in a mini food processor till smooth. This dip is soooo good. Even people who hate cottage cheese will love it. Great for dipping meats (moisture is key to eating meat post weight loss surgery) or veggies or use as a high protein salad dressing replacement.

Lunch was over and as I was washing up I could feel the heat like a blast furnace through the kitchen window. I had a few more errands to run but decided ax that idea. I found some indoor projects to occupy the day and tuned into a killer classic rock marathon. I was supposed to go out to dinner but it was still 101°F at 6 PM. Usually we cool down way quicker. Makeup, hair, putting on a bra ;) didn't sound appealing and I had gotten sucked into an episode of Chopped. Have you see that show? They give the contestants 30 minutes to make a dish with a bunch of kooky ingredients in a mystery basket, none of which go together in any way, shape or form. Yesterday they had to make an appetizer using watermelon, knockwurst, almond butter and sweet potato. Ewww no. So I ended up eating leftover zucchini & dip, a pluot and calling it a day.