Summer squash—zucchini and yellow squash—are available year-round, but are never more affordable than now.

In addition to your other favorite summer squash recipes*, make lots of squash chips for low-calorie nibbling. They’re also great to serve with beer, cocktails and wine, and as garnishes.

But start with a small batch. Try the chips plain and with different seasonings (cayenne? curry? garlic?). If you’re using a dehydrator or microwave, just divide the batch.

Make your first batch at 1/8″ thick. The thinner the chips, the crisper they are.
 
USE A DEHYDRATOR, MICROWAVE OR ACTIFRY

If you have a dehydrator, you know what to do.

You can also bake chips in the oven.

We have no space for a dehydrator, but for the past five years we’ve been devoted to Mastrad’s microwave chip maker. Chips are ready in just 3-5 minutes.

Here’s more about microwave chips, and where to get the Mastrad chip trays. We say trays, rather than tray, because they’re sold in a set of two, and we bought a second set. They’re made to stack.

Thanks to Willow Moon of CreateMindfully.com for the recipe.
 
RECIPE: SALT & VINEGAR ZUCCHINI CHIPS

Ingredients

 
Preparation

1. SLICE the squash to 1/8-thick, preferably with a mandoline slicer. Toss them with the olive oil, vinegar and salt, to coat thoroughly.
 
OVEN VARIATION

1. PREHEAT the oven to 375°F/190°C). Place the coated zucchini slices on a baking sheet. Bake until lightly browned, about 20 minutes.
 
DEHYDRATOR VARIATION

1. PLACE the coated squash slices on Teflon sheets on the dehydrator trays. Dehydrate at 110° for 12 hours or until crisp.

[1] Yellow squash chips (photo courtesy CreateMindfully.com. [2] Just slice and season (photo of zebra squash courtesy Burpee.com). [3] The Mastrad microwave chip maker.

1. PLACE the olive oil and sliced parsnips in the ActiFry and cook for 35 minutes, or until brown and crisp.

Here’s more about the Actifry, which comes in basic and deluxe models.
 
IN ADDITION TO SQUASH CHIPS, TRY THESE VEGETABLE CHIPS

 
These recipes may specify a particular technique, but you can slice any root vegetable and use any of the techniques above. You can also use a broad spectrum of veggies (fruits, too). Our colleague Laura makes jalapeño chips (tip: look for very large jalapeños).
 
CHECK OUT THE DIFFERENT TYPES OF SQUASH
 
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*Our favorite is fried zucchini, but our favorite low-calorie zucchini dish is Steamed Microwave Zucchini Parmesan. Cut slices to desired thickness and team the zucchini (or yellow squash, or mixed) to al dente; you can salt them or not. Top with pasta sauce, mozzarella and a sprinkle of oregano. To save even more calories, hold the mozzarella and sprinkle with a smaller amount of grated Parmesan cheese before serving.