Zucchini chips

**Please excuse the crappy iPhone camera quality here.

Okay, so I was inspired by this post for zucchini chips, but obviously, my chips didn't come out nearly as large as the ones the reader made.  Perhaps they used the oven instead of the food dehydrator?  Anyway, these are still delicious, and I had about a pound of small zucchini, so maybe large won't shrink up as much?  But now I have another great use if I get a boatload of zucchini this summer!  My recipe is below.

• 1 pound zucchini, sliced into 1/2" slices
• EVOO (about a tablespoon?  I don't measure)
• Cayenne pepper (a few dashes)
• Sea salt (a few grinds of the shaker)
• Butter flavor popcorn seasoning
• White cheddar flavor popcorn seasoning  (obviously you don't have to use these but this is what I had on hand so I tossed some in)

In a large storage bag, combine all ingredients and shake well so everything combines.  Place in a food dehydrator and run until the chips are crunchy and crisp.  I had mine going for about 12 hours and it seemed to come out fine.

I didn't make the salsa to accompany this, and kind of glad I didn't based on the tiny size of these things!  But, the EVOO gave it a smooth flavor, the cayenne added a little bit of heat and the other seasonings came out great.  Will definitely be making these again, and a larger batch as I could easily eat this entire bag in one sitting (but a pound of dehydrated zucchini doesn't amount to much ;)

Veggie lasagna

First, make the creamed spinach (if you buy an 8 ounce container of the Boursin or whatever you use, just use half, I'll tell you what to do with the other half in a few...)

Then, get about a pound of zucchini, peel it and slice it lengthwise, not super thin but not super thick either and when you're done, drizzle it with some EVOO, and season with whatever (I used salt, italian seasoning and a few shakes of crushed red pepper for a little heat).

Then, get an 8x8 baking/casserole dish and put a layer of the zucchini in (I greased mine with a little bit of bacon grease ;) then top it with some of the creamed spinach, not a super thick layer, then add another layer of zucchini, then spinach, you get the idea.  (I got 3 full layers with mine).  Top with spinach, then drop small spoonfuls of the leftover Boursin (if you've got it) over the top.

Bake in a preheated 350 degree oven, I did 20 minutes loosely covered with foil and 20 minutes without (or until the zucchini is tender).

SO GOOD!!

Kale chips

I apologize for the above picture, taken with the crappy camera phone.  It was on a whim and while not the prettiest, it's certainly a tasty treat when you are craving a crunchy/salty chip substitute.

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Tear the leaves from the stems from a bunch of kale (I used one bunch for this and just kept going back for a handful every time I walked by the stove-not sure how well these would store for future consumption so I just did what I would eat)
• Rinse (duh) and pat excess water off (or use your salad spinner!)
• Place kale leaves in a large bowl and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt
• Arrange on a baking sheet in a single layer and bake at 350 for about 10 minutes or until leaves are getting brown and crispy (mine cooked for a total of approximately 15 minutes).  Toss around and continue to bake until leaves are evenly browned (but not burnt) and crunchy.
• EAT

These were a lot better then I thought they would be, and although I added just a little too much salt, the EVOO gave it a really nice, smooth, almost rich flavor.  I'll definitely make it again as these are virtually guilt free and delicious :)