Thanks to some extras from my dad’s garden, I decided to try my hand at baking zucchini chips this weekend, with mixed results.

The real challenge with these, at least to me, keeping the zucchini from being too soggy to crisp up properly. What I learned is that, the thicker the slice, the more soggy the chip will likely be. Blotting the slices w/ a paper towel before hand can also help absorb excess moisture. And I had more success when I dipped the slices in the olive oil FIRST, then placed them in the bowl of dry seasoning mix. This allowed me to get a full, even coat of seasoning without risking the slice soaking up too much oil. With my first batch, I tried tossing the slices in a bowl of the dry seasoning & olive oil, and I ended up having to basically burn that batch to get the slices crisp, and most of them still lost that crispness once they cooled! Finally, with my last batch I found a tip about salting the slices and letting them sit for about 15-20 minutes, then using a paper towel to absorb excess moisture. That, plus the thick dry-seasoning coat, seemed to help a lot.

All this to say, there was a lot of trial and error with this recipe, so you may want to do some experimenting yourself. What I’m posting below are the results of the attempt that I was most satisfied with.

MY MOST SUCCESSFUL RECIPE

1. Wash & slice zucchini.

2. Lightly salt zucchini & let sit for 15-20 minutes. Then use a paper towel to absorb excess moisture from the slices.

3. In one bowl, pour about 2 tbsps of olive oil. You can add more later if you have a lot of slices and start to run low.

4. In a second bowl, mix:

2/3 cup parmesan

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp paprika

5. Dip each slice of zucchini into the olive oil, then toss in the seasoning bowl to coat thoroughly.

6. Spray a pan w/ cooking spray or line with foil. Bake in the oven at 375° F for 15 minutes, check & flip slices for a more even bake. Bake another 5 minutes & check again. Remove slices as they reach the desired crispness to burnt ratio (a golden brown color is ideal) and continue baking other slices for 3-5 minutes at a time.

Depending on the flavors you like, other seasonings can be used as well. For one of my early attempts I used a packet of Hidden Valley Ranch seasoning, with half the slices in that alone and half with added garlic & parmesan, all of which tasted good, even on the nearly burnt slices.