Zucchini Patties with Dill Dip

I finally spent some time in the kitchen last night. It made for a very late workout, but I enjoyed cooking and pretty much destroyed every flat service with prep bowls, spoons, bowls, measuring cups, etc. Hmm, really wasn’t missing that part, hah!

Earlier this Summer I picked up Taste of Home’s Summer Appetizers Magazine while waiting in line at the grocery store. $9.99, ouch – but I did mark about 5 or 6 recipes, so that’s not too bad. I found a recipe for Zucchini Patties with Dill Dip and made some slight changes and was good to go.

I bought a bunch of zucchini for my slicer, but also wanted to try something different. I had picked up some yellow squash at the produce ranch I visited last weekend and wanted to use that as well.

Dill Dip Ingredients:

3/4 Cup Sour Cream
2 Tablespoons Minced Fresh Dill
2 Teaspoons Lemon Juice
Salt and Pepper to Taste – I would say at least an 1/8 of a teaspoon for each

Directions:
Combine all ingredients in a small bowl, cover and refrigerate. ( The fresh dill smelled awesome).

Ingredients for the Patties:

2.5 Cups Shredded Zucchini – I did a combo of zucchini and yellow squash
1 Cup Seasoned Bread Crumbs – I used Trader Joe’s Organic
1 Teaspoon Seafood Seasoning – I used Old Bay
1/4 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
2 Eggs,  lightly beaten – the recipe only called for 1, definitely needs two.
2 Tablespoons Butter – melted
1 Large Carrot – thought I would need 2, but 1 was plenty
1/4 Cup finely chopped onion – left my onion a little chunkier – used a white onion
1/4 Cup All-Purpose Flour
1/2 Cup Canola Oil

I got everything prepped on my lunch hour.

I got the zucchini and squash washed, shredded and then I removed the excess liquid by squeezing the shredded pieces between paper towels.

I got my carrots and onions chopped and to be honest, wasn’t very precise with the chopping or measuring. I was in a rush due to the time constraints. I got everything loaded into the fridge and waited to do the rest after work.

I started by combining my breadcrumbs, seafood seasoning and garlic powder in a large bowl. I got all of the dry ingredients mixed well and then I added 1 lightly beaten egg and the butter. I then blended everything before adding the carrot, onion, zucchini and squash.

I gave  it another good mixing…

This is when I realized I needed another egg. The mixture wasn’t holding together well enough to make the patties. I quickly added a second lightly beaten egg and that worked out great. I then placed the 1/4 cup of flour into a shallow dish to make it easier to coat the patties before frying. My hands were too gummed up to grab the camera for that step.

I started forming the patties and then got them coated with flour before putting them into the canola oil. I had the stove set to high at first and then turned it down to medium/high for the cooking. They sizzled as they entered the pan.

I cooked them for about 3-4 minutes on each side. I removed them with a spatula onto paper towels and then served them with the dill dip. The recipe said that it yielded 2 dozen – I made 5 large patties and then put the rest of the mixture in the fridge for future meals – probably had enough to make 5 or 6 more. I was eating them as a main dish, so I wanted bigger portions. I grabbed about a golf ball size of the mixture before forming the patties for mine.

They were awesome. I am thinking they would also be good as veggie burgers wrapped in lettuce…yum!

I don’t usually eat a lot of fried foods, but these weren’t greasy at all. They did not taste heavy and it was another fun way to incorporate zucchini and other veggies  into a main meal. Enjoy!