Gluten Free Veggie Burgers

Okay, these are a little bit tricky to make, but once you've done a couple you'll be good at it and they are very worth it. Especially if you like zucchini.

Ingredients:
3 medium zucchini, finely grated (use the side of the grater with the small holes) - about 3 cups
1 small carrot, finely grated
2 bell peppers, any color, finely diced
1 tbsp smoked paprika (or regular paprika or chili powder)
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp onion powder
3 eggs
1 1/2 cups brown rice flour

Mix everything together in a large mixing bowl. Let it sit for about 10 minutes to let the rice flour absorb some of the liquid. Heat a small amount of oil (just enough to keep them from sticking) in a 10-12 inch frying pan over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, take about 1/4 cup of the mixture in your hands and squeeze it gently over a new bowl to get some of the liquid out (you don't have to get it all out, just squeeze it a bit). Until you kind of figure out what you're doing, just make 1 at a time. Once you get in the zone you'll be able to fit about 3 at a time in the pan. Flatten the mixture in your hands and put it in the frying pan, the flatten it out a bit with the back of a spoon. You're aiming for about 1/4-1/3 of an inch thickness. Cook for a few minutes, until the bottom is golden brown and it slides around the pan easily without falling apart, flip it over. Immediately use your flipper to flatten it again, and cook until the other side is golden brown. If the first couple that you try fall apart, don't worry about it. Put the fallen-apart mess back in the mixing bowl with the rest of it and try again. It will work eventually! You can freeze these if you want to - just stack them with pieces of wax paper or parchment between them. Reheat them in the oven at 350F until heated through.

Flour substitutions - feel free to sub any flour you want to use (even glutenous flours if you're one of my non-GF readers - just don't feed them to your celiac friends!). If you're using coconut, almond, or some other nut flour, try only using 1/2 a cup. Those flours absorb liquid a lot easier. I haven't actually tried coconut or almond flour, so if you try that, feel free to leave a comment and let us know how it worked!

Makes about 20.

"Deep Fried" Zucchini

Not actually deep fried at all, and made with whole grain flour!

Ingredients:
Zucchini
Brown rice flour
Water
Egg
Salt and pepper
Garlic powder
Chili powder

Make a batter out of water, egg, and brown rice flour. It should have the consistency of a pancake batter. In fact, this whole process is a lot like making tiny pancakes that just happen to have a little slice of zucchini inside them. Add garlic powder, chili powder, and salt to taste to the batter. Slice the zucchini into 1/4 inch slices. Coat the zucchini slices in brown rice flour (to help the batter stick), and then dip them in the batter. Cook small batches of zucchini slices in a single layer in a heated frying pan with a little bit of sunflower oil (or whatever you like to use. Just enough so that they don't stick.) Cook for a couple of minutes on each side, until the batter is cooked and lightly browned. The zucchini inside will be soft but not mushy. They're very good with ranch dip or mango chutney.