When the weather gets hot, the hot girls bake in their underwear. (aka blog post with 1 million hits)

So I was chilling with my good friend Francesca and we realized, zucchini rules. So we made zucchini fries. But it was really hot. So we made them in our underwear. While sipping Pinot Noir. It was very refreshing. Enjoy! :)

Baked Zucchini Fries

(Adapted from http://www.ourbestbites.com/2011/01/baked-zucchini-fries/)

About 4 large zucchini
2 c. Italian-seasoned panko bread crumbs
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese (the crumbly stuff, not shreds)
4 eggs

1. Preheat oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray. Set aside.

2.Combine bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese. Set aside.

3. Whisk 2 eggs together in a shallow pie plate and set aside.

4. Cut the ends off the zucchini and then cut the zucchini in half so you have two short, stubby pieces. Set one piece on its end and cut it in half lengthwise. Cut that half in half, making 2 planks. Repeat with the remaining halves (so you’ll get 16 planks per zucchini). Stack 2 planks on top of each other and cut into strips. When all the fries are cut, blot the pieces with a paper towel.

5. Working with a small handful at a time, dip the zucchini sticks in the egg, shake them to remove any excess, and then roll them in about 2-3 tablespoons of bread crumbs at a time, adding more as needed; you just don’t want to work with all the bread crumbs at once because they’ll soak up moisture from the egg and won’t stick to the zucchini. Place the coated strips on the prepared baking sheet and repeat until all the zucchini strips have been coated.

6. Bake for 10-12 minutes in the prepared oven then remove from oven, flip the fries, and bake for another 10-12 minutes or until the zucchini is not soggy and the coating is crisp and golden brown. 

Almost as beautiful as 2 Italian girls in their underwear... almost. ;) 

6. Sauce- We used a can of diced tomatoes mixed with dry salsa in a blender, but almost any tomato or ranch-based sauce will do. Enjoy!

Crack in a pan

BAKED MASHED POTATOES 


5lbs potatoes
3 tsp. salt
12 oz. pkg. soft cream cheese
16 oz. container of sourcream
2 tbls. butter 
6 tbls. parsley 
1 tsp pepper


First, peel potatoes. If you are left-handed and not using a dual peeler this is SUPER FUN GUYS!! 

Make sure to cut out all the eyes and spots. Boil potatoes for about 45 minutes until they are thuroughly soft and fall apart when poked with a fork. 

Drain into collinder and return to pot. Mash 'em up real good. 

Then pour in 1000 calories of cheesy goodness, butter, and pretty green stuff. Basically everything on the above ingredients list.

Grease 2 qt. baking dish with MORE BUTTER WOOO and spread potatoes into dish. 

Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or until golden brown on top. 

Top with PAPRIKA. aka Salt n Peppa's love child on blue's clues. Makes it extra impressive looking but adds no taste value.

Can be made ahead of time and baked later

Serves 8 to 16 people depending on how many are pigs. ;)