TGIF isn't only for kicking off the weekend — any day can be fry day if you put your mind to it. Classic french fries are deep-fried until crisp, sprinkled with salt and devoured instantly, but other vegetables can be made equally craveworthy for side dishes with less guilt.

Check out five of our favorite alternative fries, like Tia Mowry's zucchini sticks with ranch dip (pictured above) — which are still fried, but made of squash instead of potatoes — and oven-fried potato wedges that may convert you from your fast-food favorites. They're also a great way to coax your kids into eating vegetables without even realizing what's under the crunchy batter. Ladies and gentlemen, start your ovens.

Salt, pepper and olive oil are all you need to make crispy oven fries, but you can elevate them with spicy flavors (cayenne, turmeric and onion powder) or refreshing lemon zest, garlic and oregano.

These super-meta onion rings are actually coated in crushed baked potato chips. The rings can be eaten alone or on top of burgers and sandwiches.

Debi Mazar and Gabriele Corcos call these beet chips a "labor of love," but the hour of baking time is well worth it. Once you dip the crunchy, vibrantly colored vegetables in guacamole, regular tortilla chips and fried potatoes will pale (literally) in comparison.

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