Fried Zucchini Blossoms
18 zucchini blossoms
Pastella per Frigere (see below)
Oil for frying
2 lemons cut into wedges.
Make Pastella per Frigere.
Remove the stems and pistils from the flowers and wash them. Gently press them in a cloth to dry them. When you are ready to cook, Dip each flower in the batter and fry for about a minute until the fritters are crisp and golden, turning them over once. Be careful not to burn them too much. Lift the flowers out with a slotted spoon and drain on kitchen paper. Serve accompanied by lemon wedges.
Pastella Per Friggere – Batter for Frying
Here is the basic batter used to fry vegetables like zucchini, artichokes, broccoli, and zucchini flowers, or apples, brains, shrimp, and squid. It’s light, tasty, and crisp. This makes enough to fry zucchini for 6 people.
2 eggs
1/2 tablespoons olive oil
2/3 cup warm milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup flour
Break the eggs into a bowl; add the oil, milk, and salt. Beat until nicely mixed and homogeneous. Slowly sprinkle in the flour, beating constantly, until the mixture has the consistency of a good pancake batter. Let it sit for a couple of hours before using. When you use this batter to coat cut-up vegetables or anything else, drop in only a few pieces at a time, turn them slowly with a fork to coat all sides, and then take them out and immediately put them into hot frying oil.
Once, when visiting Nonnie in October, there was a frost warning for overnight. Nonnie had me go out and pick the last of the zucchini blossoms out of her garden. We then made a batter of flour, milk, egg, and salt. We dipped the blossoms in this and then fried them in olive oil.
Recipe provided by Laura Lander
