Zucchini Pancakes

I love potato pancakes. Absolutely love them. There is something about the creamyiness of the pancake topped with some applesauce and sour cream. Mmmmmmm.... But they are all starch and cream. So they are definately an occasional treat, especially since I am trying to shed some pounds. I was cleaning out the freezer and found some shredded zucchini from last summer. So I decided to make a pancake out of zucchini instead and try to make it a little healthier. I forgot to take a picture of it. :( I will get into the groove of it sooner or later, hopefully sooner. I will take a picture next time I make them, and there will definately be a next time because they were delicious. My husband loved them, the kids loved them, I loved them. I just wish I would have made more than I had. Instead of doing applesauce and sour cream, like we do for potato pancakes, I decided to try to make a dip out of greek yogurt. I added some lemon juice, herbs and salt and pepper and that was delish as well. Mmmmmm.. Here is what I did to make them.


Zucchini Pancakes (Makes 5)

5 cups shredded zucchini, (3 cups after the water has been squeezed out)
1/4 tsp salt
1/3 cup parmesan cheese
2 eggs
2 tblsp whole wheat flour
1/2 tsp italian seasoning
1/4 tsp black pepper

I started out with 3 cups of shredded zucchini thawed out, since I only had frozen zucchini. After I thawed it out, I sprinkled 1/4 tsp salt on it and let it sit for about a half hour. Then I placed the zucchini shreds in a doubled up viva paper towel and rung it out until no more water was coming out of the zucchini. I decided that I needed to add about 2 more cups of shredded zucchini because without the water in it, it shrunk to about 1 1/2 - 2 cups. So I repeated that process with the other zucchini except I only added a dash or two of salt. After all of it was rung out, I added the remaining ingredients and mixed to combine. I heated up a large skillet over medium high heat. Once that was heated, I added 2 tbsp of each, butter, olive oil and veg oil. Once the butter was melted, I turned the heat down to medium heat. I shaped about 1/3 cup of the mixture into a flat disk (about 1/2 inch thick) and put it in the skillet. I repeated until no more mixture. It made about 5 pancakes. It probably would have made more if I made them flatter, which I will probably do in the future. I fried them on each side until they were a nice dark golden color (i prefer them a little darker than a normal golden brown, only because I like a crispy crust.).
I made a yummy sauce to go with it. I mixed a small container of greek plain yogurt with about a tbsp of lemon juice, 1 tsp italian seasoning, 1/4 tsp dill and salt and pepper until it tasted yummy.

Hope you enjoy them as much as I did.