Crunchy Baked Portobello Fries

I love French fries. There, I said it. Now, what do I do about it? It doesn't  matter if I make them at home or eat them out, they're made of carbohydrates, salt and fat.  I left them behind (well, almost) in favor if the "side salad" years ago. Don't get me wrong, I like salads, but I miss fries.  The flavor and crispiness;  the way you can eat them with your hands. They're social food. "Want some of my fries?" 

Over the years I've tried baked "fries" but was still left with too many carbs and salt so I stopped doing that. Then I saw someone on television raving about portobello fries. After some research I came across a recipe for baked portobello "fries" that were coated in bread crumbs. I decided to try an old low-carb trick and replace most of the bread crumbs with dried onions. Before you say it, I know; onions are also carb-rich. But they're good carbs!

If you read this blog often, you know that I love to experiment with seasonings. For this recipe I added a bit of curry and black pepper, then I served them with a yogurt dipping sauce. You'll be surprised at how quickly they go together -- and how quickly the disappear - truly fast food!

Time: 20 minutes

Yield: Serves 2

Level: Easy

 
Ingredients:

2 portobello mushrooms

2/3 cup dried onions

1/4 cup panko bread crumbs

2 tbsp parmesan cheese, grated

1 tsp black pepper

2 tbsp parsley, chopped

1 tsp garlic, minced

1/4 tsp curry powder

1 egg

2 tbsp milk or water

Dipping Sauce:

1/2 cup Greek yogurt

1 tsp grainy mustard

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 420 degrees.

 
Clean the mushrooms and remove the stems (you can chop those and freeze them for the next time you need to flavor soup or broth). As you can see, I leave the gills intact, you can remove them if you prefer. Pat the mushrooms dry and slice them into pieces slightly less than 1/2 inch thick. Set aside.

In a medium sized bowl, combine the dried onions, panko crumbs, parmesan cheese, pepper, parsley, garlic and curry powder.

Prepare the egg wash by beating the egg and milk together in a bowl suitable for dipping the mushroom slices.

Place a rack on a your baking sheet and lightly oil the rack.  The rack lifts the mushrooms and allows them to cook thoroughly without having to flip them over halfway through the baking time.

Now that you have the coating station set up, dip each mushroom slice into the egg, then the dry seasoning mix and place them on the oiled rack. Mist very lightly with olive oil spray for extra crunch.

Bake for 10 minutes at 420 degrees.

While the mushrooms are baking, mix up the yogurt and grainy mustard dipping sauce.

Serve hot and enjoy!