Squash Blossoms

[porcupine]

Do any of you have ideas or recipes to share? I like them dipped in batter and fried (stuffed or not), and just chopped up and strewn across the top of... well, a lot of dishes.

[Pat]

Do any of you have ideas or recipes to share? I like them dipped in batter and fried (stuffed or not), and just chopped up and strewn across the top of... well, a lot of dishes.

I have this stuffing recipe from someone on a mailing list I'm on. Mine came out pretty well (filling tasted great) but I didn't get the oil hot enough before I fried them. I'm not including the batter recipe, since I figure you have one.

Lisa's Zucchini Blossom Filling

Make the filling (for about 20 flowers)

1 1/2 cups fresh ricotta

1/4 cup finely grated parmiggiano

the grated rind of 1 large lemon

parsley

1 large egg

mix to combine

[hillvalley]

I stuff them with herbed goat cheese (I use up whatever herbs I have lying around) and then stick them in a 450 oven for about 4-5 minutes until they start to brown and the cheese melts. I snip off a tiny piece of one corner of a baggie and use it as a pastry bag to stuff the blossoms.

It's the only way I have found where I actually taste the blossom. They aren't necessarily the prettiest looking things but they taste damn good.

If you find yourself with too many squashblossoms I am willing to deal with the hardship and take them off your hands.

[Heather]

I just read somewhere about stuffing them with rice and chard, baking, and then serving with a tomato coulis. I'd probably combine the herbed goat cheese idea and the tomato coulis, and maybe add some heat to the tomato sauce.

[Anna Blume]

I like them prepared as simply as possible, lightly battered and fried. If stuffed, ricotta & a single basil leaf or mozzarella and an anchovy fillet. Common (Italian) wisdom is that even a mild (French) goat cheese is too assertive, so you need a neutral milky, fresh cheese instead, but that sounds hypocritical to me if you're putting an anchovy inside.

One of my favorite Italian bar foods is a thin pannino made w crusty, thin roll (a mini schiaciatta/focaccia), a slice of baked ham, a sliver of melted cheese and a couple of crisp, newly fried zucchini blossoms. Don't really care for risotto or frittate made w the blossoms; too subtle for the likes of me.

For an elaborate, elegant preparation of the female blossoms baked w small squash attached, look for bleudauvergne (Lucy Vatel)'s recipe or post on egullet--or on her own blog linked to her posts there. Stunning. I don't think we have the same kind of squash here in the US.

[Pat]

For an elaborate, elegant preparation of the female blossoms baked w small squash attached, look for bleudauvergne (Lucy Vatel)'s recipe or post on egullet--or on her own blog linked to her posts there. Stunning. I don't think we have the same kind of squash here in the US.

Wow, thanks. I tracked that down. For anyone else interested, the method and photos are here.

[zoramargolis]

I don't think we have the same kind of squash here in the US.

What is pictured in the blog (beautiful photographs!) are just very young, pretty standard looking zucchini, with the flower still attached to the blossom end. They aren't often sold that young and small. By the time the zucchini has grown to a more marketable size, the flower has long since withered and dropped off. These little puppies grow incredibly fast, and it takes major diligence on the part of a gardener or farmer to catch them and cut them off the plant when they are the perfect size and the flower is still firmly attached.

[Anna Blume]

What is pictured in the blog (beautiful photographs!) are just very young, pretty standard looking zucchini, with the flower still attached to the blossom end. They aren't often sold that young and small.

I don't have any experience growing zucchini, but the only time I placed a special order for the blossoms from a local farm, I was given the female blossoms attached to tiny, slender squash. No way no how could I have coaxed more than a tablespoon or two of cheese into those blossoms let alone filled them with all that Lucy nestled into petals in Lyon. Since there are so many different types of the squash, I just figured...

[marketfan]

I don't have any experience growing zucchini, but the only time I placed a special order for the blossoms from a local farm, I was given the female blossoms attached to tiny, slender squash. No way no how could I have coaxed more than a tablespoon or two of cheese into those blossoms let alone filled them with all that Lucy nestled into petals in Lyon. Since there are so many different types of the squash, I just figured...

Truck Patch has been bringing young zucchini with female flowers attached to Mount Pleasant, 14 & U and Bloomingdale. But the zucchini were not very tiny so I think you could make Lucy's recipe with them. Sunnyside has had male flowers in flat plastic bags. I have made them twice in the last thre days in a preheated 350-400 degree oven (once at 350, once at 400), drizzled with olive oi and baked for 20 minutes on a cast iron skillet.

Stuffing:

1. ricotta, egg yolk, salt, pepper, basil shred

2. sauteed grated zucchini with onion and thyme

and I have often made them stuffed with mozzarella and anchovy, but fried.

[deangold]

We stuff them with smoked mozzarella but a very oightly smoked one. Then its dipped n an eggwash and panko and then fried till golden. Serve on a zippy tomato coulis.

[Anna Blume]

Now that I've reread these posts, let me add a shout-out to Mexican dishes that call for squash blossoms. Perhaps I wrote posts long ago in reference to Oyamel and Joe Raffa's incredible cooking demos at the Penn Quarter FRESHFARM Market when he was the chef and promoting the restaurant's annual Squash Blossom Festival. The beautiful, delicious soup still haunts me, though the tacos were great, too.

[zoramargolis]

My favorite Oaxacan restaurant in L.A., Guelaguetza, makes enchiladas filled with squash blossoms, onions, mushrooms and summer squash that are covered with molé amarillo. Not my favorite dish there, but very, very good.

Pizzeria Mozza makes squash blossom pizza. Very beautiful to look at, with the flowers arranged in a sunburst pattern on the cooked pizza, and then popped back into the oven for just a brief kiss of heat.

I'll be back in L.A. at the end of July, and plan to hit both places while I'm there.

[hillvalley]

There is always this

[Choirgirl21]

Picked up blossoms again, this time at 14th & U and this time still attached to the squash. Can't cook them until tomorrow. Refrigerate or leave on the counter?

[thistle]

My totally untested opinion-I'd leave them out, I think they'd shrivel in the frig...I saw a really interesting sweet stuffed zucchini blossom on Masterchef UK the other day (just discovered this on BBC America & I've been watching any that I can find).

[monavano]

Picked up blossoms again, this time at 14th & U and this time still attached to the squash. Can't cook them until tomorrow. Refrigerate or leave on the counter?

I'd wrap in a paper towel, then place in a plastic baggie and fridge.

[weezy]

I'd refrigerate. Fresh cut flowers are kept in a refrigerated case to keep them intact longer, so I think the same would hold true for squash blossoms.

[Pat]

I'd wrap in a paper towel, then place in a plastic baggie and fridge.

I'd use a real Baggie (rather than ziplock) and leave it open

[hillvalley]

I'd go with the paper towel and baggie. New Morning Farms sells them by the dozen at their Saturday market; I picked up a container and am keeping the blossoms in the container in the fridge.

Other uses that haven't been discussed are in quesadillas or omelets. I check for extra protein, rinse lightly and throw them in the pan while either concoction cooks.

[deangold]

Risotto

[Sthitch]

I made pesto out of the ones I picked up today. I used hazelnuts instead of pine nuts and it worked very well.

[lperry]

For storage, I pick them off my plants all summer, and if I only get a few at a time, or if I don't use them right away, I stand them in a large-ish plastic container with the pedicel end in the bottom and the flower end toward the top. Add a little water into the bottom but don't get it up high enough that it is on the petals. Pop on the lid, put them in the fridge, and they will drink the water and be fresh and gorgeous when you use them.

[DonRocks]

There is always this

How is it possible that nobody but me has "Like"d this post? I'm not sure what this is, but it looks like *the* perfect seasonal dish. Ikura and crème frâiche, and that's it? I know there's no uni in here, but the color of the blossom gut is nearly identical, and with this prep, you could pull off a tiny amount - just a pea's worth - for playfulness (and umami), and still maintain the integrity of the dish.

I don't know if you made this, but it's brilliant - I at first semi-disagreed with your post about not frying the blossoms; this picture made me understand why you said it.

[hillvalley]

I don't know if you made this, but it's brilliant - I at first semi-disagreed with your post about not frying the blossoms; this picture made me understand why you said it.

Of course I made it. I wouldn't post a pic of someone else's food without giving credit.