Zucchini Lightens Up

Sloopy’s is a great little restaurant in Manhattan Beach. One of the best things to order there is the fried zucchini. I like it so much that I decided to adapt it for low-fat cooking--without the added fat from deep frying.

To keep the recipe low in fat, I dip the zucchini strips into nonfat egg substitute, then roll them in Italian bread crumbs. I bake them at 450 degrees on a baking sheet sprayed with buttery garlic-flavored cooking spray, then lightly spray the zucchini strips with the cooking spray to help in browning. They are nicely browned and tender after 25 minutes.

While they’re still hot from the oven, sprinkle them lightly with sea salt and freshly grated Parmesan cheese; use Parmigiano-Reggiano for maximum flavor. They taste close to deep-fried zucchini but with a clean, non-greasy taste.

OVEN-FRIED ZUCCHINI WITH FRESHLY GRATED PARMESAN CHEESE

4 zucchini (about 1 pound)

1/4 cup nonfat egg substitute

1/3 cup Italian-style bread crumbs

Nonstick buttery garlic cooking spray

Sea salt

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Cut each zucchini lengthwise into 4 strips. Dip zucchini strips into nonfat egg substitute to coat, then roll in bread crumbs to coat. Arrange in single layer on baking sheet sprayed with buttery garlic-flavored cooking spray. Lightly spray zucchini strips with cooking spray. Bake at 450 degrees until browned and fork-tender, about 25 minutes. Lightly sprinkle with sea salt and Parmesan.

4 servings. Each serving:

85 calories; 455 mg sodium; 5 mg cholesterol; 2 grams fat; 10 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams protein; 0.57 gram fiber.