Stuffed Zucchini Flowers Recipe NZ

Zucchini or courgettes which ever way you say it, this recipe

for stuffed zucchini flowers is totally delicious!

Vegan and gluten-free options as with most of my recipes, these seasonal treats are worth the effort and lovely to enjoy with a cold glass of your favourite beverage on a summers evening.

I'm terrible at labeling my seeds and for a while there I thought my zucchini seeds where turning into pumpkins as the leaves are very similar when they are seedlings, then to my delight after planting around a dozen plants out into the garden they are actually zucchini's!

Zucchini flowers are a gardeners delight and conundrum; to leave or to pick? Pumpkin or kamo kamo flowers can also be used in place of zucchini. In this recipe there are multiple options for the filling, depending on preference and dietary requirements. The Easy Cheese should be made in advance. Use a small sharp knife and cut from the base of the flower upwards about one centimetre to remove the stamen as it is bitter.

STUFFED ZUCCHINI FLOWERS RECIPE

~Recipe from The Veggie Tree Spring and Summer Cookbook~

I always use rice bran oil for frying when I want a crispy crunchy result and rice bran oil has a very neutral flavour which makes what ever you are cooking in it shine.

Vegan | Gluten-free

Serves 4–6

Gather your ingredients and make one portion of the beer batter:

BEER BATTER

Gather your ingredients and measure the following into a bowl:

1 c cornflour (starch) or tapioca flour

1/4 c each brown rice flour + maize flour

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

200ml pilsner beer or soda water

Whisk together well and leave to rest. Prepare the zucchini flowers:

10 zucchini flowers, stamen removed

Mix the following ingredients in a bowl.

Dairy version:

1 1/2 c ricotta or Easy Cheese

150g mozzarella, cut into small pieces or finely grated parmesan

Vegan version:

1 block tofu (300g), crumbled

150g dairy-free mozzarella, grated

with: 2 T basil pesto

1/4 c olives, pitted and chopped

2 sprigs of mint, finely chopped 1 tsp salt 1/2 tsp cracked pepper

Using a teaspoon, carefully fill your zucchini flowers with the mixture and overlap the petals when they are full to secure.

In either a deep fryer, large pot or 'cast iron wok, heat:

1.5 L rice bran oil

When the oil is at 170°C dip the flowers one at a time into the batter. Let the batter drip into the bowl a little, then carefully place into the hot oil. Fry three or four at a time, moving them around a bit and turning when their underside is golden. Use a slotted spoon to move the flowers around in the oil and remove when golden onto a cooling rack or paper towel.

This beer batter can also be used to coat any number of ingredients for deep frying. Some of my favourites are mushrooms, aubergine, broccoli, kumara and potato pieces. I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do.

Anna x