I mentioned zucchini flowers last week, but for got to take a picture of them then, which gave me a perfect excuse to go back this week and buy some more. Of course if you are lucky enough to grow your own zucchini (or courgettes, for the British folks out there), you have a free source of these delicacies right in your own back yard.

There is little on this earth that tastes better than a pan-fried zucchini flower, at least in my experience. Luckily they are easy to make (finding the flowers is usually the hard part for me).

First, carefully wash the flowers inside and out. On a plate, prepare a mixture of flour with a little salt and pepper (a pinch of sugar is optional, and adds an interesting flavor). In a shallow bowl, place either a lightly scrambled raw egg or some soy milk. The egg is the traditional ingredient here, but I’ve found that replacing it with soy milk makes for a great dish, too, allowing the flavor of the flowers to shine through more.

Wet each flower in the egg or soy milk and then lightly coat with the flour mixture. Pan fry the flowers in olive oil over medium-high heat, allowing them to lightly brown on each side. Remove the flowers from the pan and drain them briefly on paper towels before serving hot (that is, immediately). Yum yum yum yum yum.

Post from: Blisstree

Pan-fried zucchini flowers

The same day I also picked up some zucchini flowers, a favorite from my childhood that I rarely get to enjoy much anymore. Since I don’t keep eggs in the house regularly anymore, I tried using soy milk to dip the flowers in before lightly coating them with flour (plus salt and pepper) and pan frying them in olive oil until lightly browned on each side. They turned out delicious!

Post from: Blisstree

They come in yellow, too

1. Escarole – This leafy green vegetable always appeared in simple soups at my grandmother’s house. I’m pretty sure her recipe contained some kind of meat, but I often make escarole soup with vegetable broth, garlic, and cannellini beans. It’s also delicious sautéed with some garlic and olive oil.
2. Fennel – I was actually quite old before I learned the English word for this veggie, which was called fenuke in our family (from a southern Italian dialect). Fennel has a texture similar to celery and tastes like licorice. It made an appearance towards the end of almost every meal, served raw and cut into quarters. It supposedly aided our digestion.
3. Zucchini flowers – If you grow zucchini in your garden, you have to use some of the flowers to make this next time they’re in bloom: wash the flowers carefully (also check inside for bugs). Dip the flowers in egg and then flour (with a little salt and pepper), and then pan-fry them in hot olive oil, cooking each side until it’s lightly brown. Soooooo good. Man I wish I had a garden, and that it was zucchini flower season…

Of course zucchini flowers are nowhere to be found at this time of year, but tonight’s dinner is going to start with escarole soup and end with some fenuke. In fact, that just might be the whole dinner. It’s my little way of honoring my grandmother. She passed away on Saturday.

I miss you, Nani.

Post from: Blisstree

Three vegetables my grandmother taught me to love