Got a dinner party or gathering coming up. These Baked Mozzarella Sticks make a perfect appetizer and are sure to be a hit. They’re easy to make and are baked not fried so no messy oil cleanup to deal with. Check out the quick video below to see how they come together.

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Ingredients:

12 sticks mozzarella string cheese (each 1 oz sticks)
1 cup panko breadcrumbs
1 cup Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
2 Tbsp milk
2 Tbsp salted butter, melted
Marinara sauce for dipping

Instructions:

1.Preheat the oven to 400. Cut each cheese stick in half, so you have 24 pieces.

2.Pour the flour into a wide bowl or pie tin. In a second bowl,mix the eggs and milk together. In a third wide bowl, mix the panko, Italian breadcrumbs, parmesan, salt and pepper together.

3.First roll a mozzarella piece in the flour to coat it evenly. Then drop it in the bowl of eggs to coat with the egg wash. Then roll the mozzarella in the bread crumb mix to cover completely with the crumbs. For maximum crispiness and to ensure the mozzarella wouldn’t leak out of the breading when cooking, I dipped the mozzarella into the egg and then the breadcrumbs a second time before laying on a parchment-covered baking sheet. Repeat with all of the mozzarella sticks.

4. Place the baking sheet of breaded mozzarella sticks into the freezer for an hour. Don’t skip this step! If you do, the cheese will melt out of the breading onto the pan when you bake them.

5. After an hour, remove the cheese sticks from the freezer and drizzle or brush the melted butter evenly over the cheese sticks. (This step is to help the breading brown since we’re not deep-frying them in oil.)

6. Bake the cheese sticks in the preheated oven for about 12-15 minutes, turning over halfway through the cooking time, until they are lightly browned and crisp on the outside.

7. Once they’re cool enough to handle, serve them with marinara sauce for dipping!
Makes 24 cheese sticks.