Lemon Ricotta Stuffed Zucchini Flowers
One way to curb the large amount of zucchini that is abundant during the growing season is to harvest some of the flowers to stuff and fry. It's a quick appetizer or even a lunch, delicious with ricotta, lemon, and basil.
Ingredients
- 12 zucchini (or other squash) blossoms
- neutral oil for frying I like to use avocado oil.
- Flaky salt, to season after frying
FOR THE LEMON RICOTTA STUFFING
- ¾ cup whole milk ricotta cheese
- ¼ cup parmiggiano-reggiano cheese freshly grated
- 2 Tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
- zest of one lemon
- juice of one lemon
- salt & pepper, to taste
FOR THE BATTER
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
- salt & pepper, to taste
- 1 cup beer of choice or sub sparkling water
Instructions
- Be sure the zucchini flowers are cleaned of dirt and bugs. Remove the stem and carefully pull the stamen from the inside of the flower. The flowers are delicate and will tear easily so I like to use kitchen tweezers to remove the stamen.
- Mix the ingredients for the lemon ricotta filling in a small bowl, then transfer it to a piping bag or a plastic ziploc bag with the corner cut off. Pipe a small bit of filling into each flower and twist the tops of the petals together.
- Mix the ingredients for the batter together with a whisk. Use more or less of the beer or sparkling water as needed to create a batter that is thinner than pancake batter, but not as thin as a vinaigrette. It needs enough body to adhere to the flowers and create a crispy coating.
- In a skillet, heat a neutral oil to about 350℉. Use enough to come up about half-way on the flowers. Allow them to become golden on one side, then flip them over to brown on the other. Remove to a paper-towel-lined platter.
- Season immediately with flaky sea salt, garnish with basil, and enjoy!