Versiunea in limba romana: Flori de dovlecei cu ricotta si busuioc, 2 variante delicioase Delicate, orange yellow, sunny courgette flowers... Oh, the joy! I adore this cute delicious flowers. A couple of days ago I found these beauties again in shops in Bucharest. The happiness! Fleurs de courgette...My first thought was to prepare them tempura style, but I quickly found out that I had no all purpose flour and mineral water. All kinds of flours in my cupboard, faro, rice, oat, millet, kamut, chickpeas, but no all purpose, plain white flour... And I wanted those flowers so badly! With no desire to go to the market, kids almost back from school, I had to act quickly and have lunch ready by the time they come home. Think, think, think... Brainstorming... What if? Let's try ricotta and fresh basil from my garden. The courgette flowers stuffed with basil flavored ricotta were amazing. I baked some and deep fried the others in bread crumbs, with some spicy fresh tomatoes salsa as a dipping sauce. Loved both, but my all time favorites were... What do you think? Enjoy!
250 g ricotta cheese
6-7 fresh basil leaves, chopped
1 garlic cloves, thinly cut
2 tbsp olive oil
1 egg
salt and pepper freshly grounded
aprox 18 courgette flowers
60 - 70 g flour (I used kamut flour, but all purpose flour is OK)
2 eggs + 2-3 tbsp milk, mixed well
7-8 slices of golden toast Mulino bianco, transformed in rough bread crumbs
Salsa: 3 - 4 fresh tomatoes + peperoncino, depending on your taste + 2 garlic cloves + 1 tbsp olive oil
salt, freshly ground pepper
Mix ricotta, basil, garlic, olive oil and egg, until you obtain a cream. Wash carefully the courgette flowers in cold water, then gently dry them on kitchen paper. Remove the pistil of the flower. Carefully fill the flowers with the ricotta cream, using a little teaspoon.
Now we have two options, just try the one you like best... Or both of them, just like me :)
a. Heat the oven at 180 degrees Celsius. Put the stuffed flowers in a ceramic, heat resistant tray, with one tablespoon of olive oil and a dot of butter, sprinkle with fleur de sel and fresh pepper. Bake for 20 minutes. Simple and delicious.
b. Prepare salsa: blitz fresh tomatoes, garlic, peperoncino and olive oil in a blender.
Next steps to be done with each flower, one by one: take one flower, dust it in flour, wash it carefully and quickly in the egg & milk mixture, then cover it in bread crumbs. Repeat with each one.
Heat very well the oil (as for deep frying) in a pan (you can use sun flower oil, or maybe canola or peanut oil for healthier choices). When oil is heated, deep fry the flowers, just a few at a time, until breadcrumbs become golden. Take them out of the pan and pet dry on kitchen paper. Repeat with the rest of the flowers. Serve them hot, dipping the flowers in the spicy fresh tomato salsa. Deliciously basil flavored flowers... I love them!
Enjoy!
