My favorite thing at the farmer’s market near my office last summer was the stand that would sell bouquets of zucchini flowers. But the bouquets weren’t for viewing; they were for cooking and devouring. It was always the first stall I stopped at every Thursday, anxious to ensure I would get my blossoms before they were sold out. If you haven’t tried zucchini flowers, you are missing a real treat.

Zucchini blossoms are beautiful and delicious

I first tried zucchini blossoms almost twenty years ago when I came across a recipe for squash blossom fritters. While one could argue that the blossoms were simply a delivery method for goat cheese (just as Southern grits can be a delivery system for butter), the flower does add something. After trying that recipe (and we had plenty of zucchini plants in our garden at the time), I was hooked, and I would eat zucchini blossoms before I would regularly eat zucchini. Go figure.

Every summer, I look forward to zucchini blossoms. I grow zucchini plants in the garden for the flowers, not the fruit. Just last weekend, my husband and I enjoyed an appetizer special at a very nice restaurant that was, you guessed it, zucchini blossoms. The flowers are delicate so the only way to enjoy them is fresh, in the summer time.

Recipe ideas featuring zucchini blossoms

I think the tastiest way to eat zucchini blossoms is stuffed, dipped in a tempura batter and fried (with just a bit of sea salt, of course), but there are other ways, too. After carefully cleaning the flowers and removing the pistil and stamen, you can:

• Cook them into a frittata
• Decorate a salad
• Use them in a pasta sauce
• Put them in quesadillas

Zucchini blossom fritters

Zucchini blossoms - 10 to 20 depending on how many people you want to serve. Four per person is a good number.
Herbed goat cheese
Tempura batter
Canola oil for frying
Salt and pepper to taste

Carefully wash and clean the zucchini blossoms, leaving about an inch or so of the stem. Gently place about a teaspoon of herbed goat cheese in the center of the flower and twist the petals closed ever so gently.

Heat the oil in wide frying pan. When hot, carefully dip the stuffed blossoms into the tempura batter then place in the frying pan. Cook until lightly golden on one side, turn over, and cook until lightly golden on the other side. Remove to drain on a paper towel. Season with salt and a little pepper while still hot. Serve warm.

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