Breaded Zucchini & Cauliflower

These are very, very tasty and filling. Try them, you'll see.

Breaded Zucchini & Cauliflower

• ¼ cup flour
• ½ cup Creamy Dressing (recipe below)
• ¾ cup bread crumbs (recipe below if you want to make your own)
• ¼ cup cashew Parmesan cheese (recipe below)
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 zucchini, thinly sliced (about 2 cups)
• ½ head cauliflower, cut into florets (about 2 cups)

Add flour to a bowl. Pour Creamy Dressing into a second bowl. Combine bread crumbs, cashew Parmesan cheese, ground black pepper and garlic powder in a third bowl, mixing well.

Working with as many zucchini slices as will fit in the air fryer basket in a single layer, dredge zucchini in flour mixture, then dip into ranch dressing, and press into bread crumb mixture to coat both sides. Place on parchment paper in the air fryer basket in a single layer.

For the cauliflower, repeat the process without dipping in the flour mixture. And bake for 5 minutes. Then turn pieces and bake another 4 minutes on the second side.

Air fry method: Air-fry at 400º until browned, 5 to 6 minutes for Zucchini pieces. For Cauliflower, bake 5 minutes on one side, turn pieces and bake another 4 minutes on second side.

Oven method: Bake zucchini at 400º until browned, 8 to 10 minutes. Cauliflower bake 7 minutes on one side, turn pieces and bake another 5 minutes on second side.

Creamy Dressing

• 1 cup raw almonds
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and whole
• 4 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 2 teaspoons vinegar (any vinegar is good)
• 1 fresh lemon or lime, juiced
• 2 heaping tablespoons capers, drained
• 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• 1 1/2 cups filtered water
• 2 tablespoons vegan Worcestershire sauce or Tamari
• 3 tablespoons raisins
• Ground black pepper to taste

Put leftover dressing in a glass jar and store in refrigerator.

Chickpea Breadcrumbs

• 2 15-ounce cans chickpeas or 3½ cups cooked

Preheat oven to 350º

Rinse the chickpeas well, saving 1½ tablespoons of the aquafaba for the seasoning mix.

Add aquafaba and seasonings to bowl and mix into a paste

• 1½ tablespoons aquafaba
• 2 teaspoons paprika
• ½ teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon chili powder

Add chickpeas and mix thoroughly to coat all the beans well.

Spread the chickpeas on a large, parchment paper lined, rimmed baking sheet.

Bake for 40 minutes, remove from oven and stir around. Return to oven for another 20 minutes.

Remove from the oven and cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, leaving the oven on.

Transfer the chickpeas to a food processor and pulse into fine crumbs, stopping once or twice to scrape the bowl.

Spread in an even layer on the same baking sheet and return and bake 20 minutes.

Remove from oven and stir around, returning to the oven for another 10 minutes.

Turn off the heat, leaving the chickpea crumbs in the oven for an hour longer to dry.

Remove the crumbs from the oven and cool completely. Transfer to an airtight storage container.

Cashew Parmesan Cheese

• ¼ cup sesame seeds
• ¼ cup cashews
• ½ cup nutritional yeast
• ¼ tsp caraway seeds
• ¼ tsp fennel seeds

Put all ingredients in a high-speed blender and blend until it has the chunkiness you like.

Note: if you’d like a little richer taste, you can roast the seeds and nuts in the oven for 10 minutes at 400º.