I totally BOMBED these Zucchini Bites (http://curiouscountrycook.blogspot.com/2012/03/zucchini-tots.html) the first time that I made them because I neglected to squeeze the excess water from the shredded zucchini, which resulted in super soggy bites. This recipe was so simple that I wanted to try again, remembering this time the important part of ridding the zucchini of it’s excess water. I figured if I was successful the second time around, this may be a recipe that Reagan will love and get her to eat a vegetable!

I found the recipe on the Curious Country Cook’s website: http://curiouscountrycook.blogspot.com/2012/03/zucchini-tots.html

I changed two parts of this recipe; what I baked the Bites in and how long I baked them for. I don’t own a mini muffin tin, so I used a larger muffin tin. The mini muffin tin would be perfect to bake things for Reagan, because they would be just her size…that is if I can ever remember to buy one when I’m at Marshall’s, Home Good’s, or even at the local grocery.
The original recipe calls for you to bake the Bites for 15-18 minutes. This would be the perfect abount of time if you were using a mini muffin tin. Since I had a larger amount of the bite mixture within each tin hole I had to up the baking time to 23 minutes.

The recipe yields 12 mini Bites (mini muffin tin) or 7 larger Bites (larger muffin tin)

Ingredients

1 cups zucchini, grated
1 egg (1 large egg equals 3-4 tbsp when whisked together)
1/4 yellow onion, diced
1/4 cup cheese (cheddar or Parmesan work the best)
1/4 cup bread crumbs – I used Italian style
Salt and Pepper

Preheat oven to 400F. Spray muffin tin with non-stick spray, set aside.

Grate the zucchini and then place in a paper towel to squeeze out the excess water or place in a colander and push down on the shredded zucchini and allow for the water to drain through the holes– if you skip this part, the middle of the Bites will be really soggy (SOGGY IS AN UNDERSTATEMENT…THE WILL BE MUSH!!!)

In a bowl combine, the egg, onion, cheese, bread crumbs, zucchini, salt and pepper.

Using a spoon, fill the muffin holes to the top.

Bake for 15-18 minutes (mini muffin tin) or 23 minutes (larger muffin tin). Keep an eye on the tops of the Bites. When they are browning, remove them from the oven so they don’t burn.

I’m not going to lie and say that these were Reagan’s favorite, but she did eat half of one at two different sittings and that’s more vegetables than she’s consumed in awhile. My husband, mother and I really enjoyed them, so they are worth making again…but DON’T FORGET TO SQUEEZE!