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    Home » Recipes » Side Dishes

    Zucchini Cakes with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

    August 19, 2013 • Updated: February 22, 2021 • by Renée • This post may contain affiliate links.

    Jump to Recipe   Print Recipe
    Baked Zuchinni Cakes with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

    Zucchini Cakes are a great way to use up those prolific summer squashes. Made with fresh zucchini and a short list of simple ingredients, these tasty zucchini patties can be served as a light main dish, a side dish, or even as an appetizer.

    Baked Zucchini Cakes with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

    This post may contain affiliate links, but don't worry - they won't bite.

    Mom always let our zucchinis grow to ginormous proportions before she picked them. Then she would slice and cook them 1950's-style - boiled in salted water until they lost all signs of life. Served up flaccid and grey on my plate, they looked like the slugs Mom salted on the sidewalk at night. Our dog wouldn't even eat them from under the table for me. 

    Wavy Line

    Fast forward about twenty years: we were invited to have dinner at the home of our friends, Bob and Vicky. When we arrived, Vicky informed us that we would be having, among other things, fresh zucchini. Vicky appeared so excited about her zucchini, as if it is something to look forward to. 

    Imagine my surprise then when Vicky placed before me a dish of lovely little green and yellow coins, lightly seasoned and perfectly tender-crisp. I nearly ask her what they were - I didn't recognize them as zucchini! They were delicious! 

    That night over dinner, Vicky told us how she grew those little zucchinis in her very own garden, and that it was the first time she had ever planted zucchini. She went on to say that she had no idea how prolific they were, so she had planted about twelve zucchini hills. (If you've ever grown zucchini, you know what that means!)

    Vicky sent me home with a bag of pickle-size zukes - and I was thrilled to have them!

    Wavy Line

    It’s been a long time since I discovered my love for zucchini, and I’ve had lots of opportunities to learn how versatile they are. 

    Zucchini Cakes have become a summer favorite, and a great way to use those abundant summer squashes. This healthy zucchini cakes recipe outlines directions for baking them in the oven. (Slower, but healthier.) However, if you prefer, they can be fried in a skillet instead. (Quicker, and the results are prettier.) 

    Baked Zucchini Cakes can be served as either a light main dish, a side dish, or even an appetizer. 

    Baked Zuchinni Cakes with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
    4 from 1 vote

    Baked Zucchini Cakes with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

    Made with fresh zucchini and a short list of simple ingredients, these tasty zucchini patties can be served as a light main dish, a side dish, or even as an appetizer.
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe
    Course: Appetizer, Main dish or side
    Cuisine: Vegetarian
    Prep Time:30 minutes
    Cook Time:24 minutes
    Total Time:54 minutes
    Servings: 4
    Calories: 219kcal
    Author: Renee

    Ingredients

    US Customary - Metric
    Zucchini Cakes
    • 2 ½ cups grated zucchini
    • ½ large red bell pepper
    • ½ medium onion finely chopped
    • 1 cup Panko crumbs
    • ½ cup grated Parmesan
    • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
    • ¼ teaspoon white pepper
    • 2 large eggs beaten
    Roasted Red Pepper Sauce
    • 1 large red bell pepper
    • ½ cup tomato sauce
    • 1 tablespoons lemon juice
    • 2 tablespoons olive oil
    • 1 clove garlic
    • ½ teaspoon hot sauce I use Sriracha

    Instructions

    Roasting Red Peppers

    • Place oven rack 4-5" away from heating element.
      Preheat boiler.
    • Seed and remove stems from 1 ½ red bell peppers.
      Brush both sides of each pepper half with olive oil.
      Place prepared pepper halves on a foil lined baking sheet.
    • Place baking sheet in the oven and broil the pepper for 4-5 minutes on one side.
      Turn peppers over and broil peppers for another 4-5 minutes.
      The pepper skin will char.
    • Remove broiled peppers from oven and allow to cool.
      When peppers are cool, use a paring knife (or your fingers) to carefully peel away as much of the pepper skin as possible.

    Zucchini Cakes

    • Preheat oven to 400°F [200°C]
    • Finely chop one of the roasted pepper halves.
    • In a medium bowl, combine chopped red pepper, zucchini, onion, Panko crumbs, parmesan, salt and pepper.
    • Pour beaten eggs into zucchini mixture and stir to combine.
    • Bake the in the Oven
      (Zucchini cakes cooked this way aren't as pretty, but they're healthier.)
      Cover a cookie sheet with parchment paper and spray it with cooking spray.
      Form zucchini mixture into cakes and place on parchment.
      Bake cakes for 12-15 minutes, turn and bake another 12-15 minutes.
      I use a wide-mouth canning lid to make perfectly-formed cakes.
    • OR Fry Them on the Stovetop
      (Fried zucchini cakes have a lovely, golden-brown crust, but they are higher in calories and fat.)
      Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat.
      Add enough vegetable oil so that there is a thin coating across the entire skillet.
      Form patties or use a measuring cup to drop ¼ cup size cakes onto the skillet.
      Fry on both sides until gold brown.
      Do not overcrowd the pan.
    • Serve with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce.

    Making the Red Pepper Sauce

    • Place 2 roasted red pepper halves, along with the remaining Sauce Ingredients, into a small blender cup and process until smooth.
    • Serve hot or cold. Keeps in fridge for about a week.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1serving | Calories: 219kcal | Carbohydrates: 14g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 104mg | Sodium: 737mg | Potassium: 521mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 7g | Vitamin A: 2458IU | Vitamin C: 98mg | Calcium: 188mg | Iron: 2mg
    This website provides approximate nutrition information for convenience and as a courtesy only. You are solely responsible for ensuring that any nutritional information provided is accurate, complete, and useful.
    Have you tried this recipe?Mention @TheGoodHeartedWoman or tag #thegoodheartedwoman!

    The Roasted Red Pepper Sauce in this zucchini cakes recipe is also delicious on Crab Cakes!

    Pacific Northwest Dungeness Crab Cakes with Roasted Red Pepper Sauce | The Good Hearted Woman

    Wavy Line

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    Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links, including Amazon affiliate links, which means we may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that we have recommended. While clicking these links won't cost you any extra money, they do help keep this site up and running. As always, all opinions and images are my own. Please check out our disclosure policy for more details. Thank you for your support!
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    About Renée

    Renée is writer, music maker, artist, and storyteller. In her spare time, you can find her writing love songs about cowboys, exploring the moss-covered nooks and crannies of the Pacific Northwest, and making music with her talented singer-husband.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Kristy @Loveandblasphemy says

      August 24, 2013 at 9:01 am

      Tis the season for zucchini recipes!!! I have tons growing in my backyard and am always trying to find new ways to cook it, which is a good thing because we love zucchini around here.

      Reply
    2. Rick B. says

      August 21, 2013 at 7:18 pm

      I find these little cakes wonderfully tasty and I enjoy them greatly. My wife is so talented! I just had to brag. Way to go baby!

      Reply
      • Renée ♥ says

        August 21, 2013 at 8:28 pm

        Thank you, Mr. B. ♥

        Reply
    3. Javelin Warrior says

      August 20, 2013 at 2:45 pm

      I love the sound of the red pepper sauce - a perfect compliment to the zucchini. And I also remember similar over-cooked, limp little pieces of squash on my plate growing up. But these look so tasty!

      Reply
    4. Anita Fitzwater-Stevens says

      August 20, 2013 at 9:29 am

      4 stars
      What a great idea for zucchini! I'm always looking for new ways to prepare it. Can't wait to try this one out!

      Reply
      • Renée ♥ says

        August 20, 2013 at 10:32 am

        Thanks, Anita! You are going to love these - and the fact the they are baked instead of fried only makes them better.

        Reply

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