Goat’s Cheese & Ricotta Squash Blossom with Spicy Romesco

harvest // blog issue 04

Fried Squash Blossom w. Spanish Romesco

HARVEST - Ricotta and Goats Cheese Stuffed Squash Blossoms with Cashew Peperonata.jpg

Squash Blossoms present themselves once a year during late spring and early summer. In other parts of the world, you might ask for Zucchini Flowers, as they’re poetically described in Australia. Fresh from the supermarket they should generally be clean, but give a quick inspection and dust off if need be. This plant-based dish is a cute little show stopper in my opinion and a nice date-night preparation. If you don’t decide to stuff them, they’re also fun and festive tossed through a delicate salad, layered in a moussaka or lasagna, lightly folded into a pasta preparation or laid dramatically across a pizza in a final seconds of firing the pie.

🍽 Makes 12-16 | 🕒 Prep Time: 20 minutes | Cook Time: 10 min | 🔪 Skill Level: Intermediate

Ingredients

Squash Blossom Stuffing

1 cup Goat’s Cheese

1 cup Low Fat Ricotta Cheese

1 tbsp. Fresh Basil (chopped finely)

1 tsp. Fresh Chives (chopped finely)

4 tbsp. Kalamata Olives, pitted, chopped

¼ tsp. Kosher Salt

½ Lemon, Zest

pinch Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Tempura Batter

½ cup All-purpose flour

½ cup Cornstarch

½ tsp. Salt, plus more for serving

1 large Egg, whisked

¾ cup Chilled Seltzer Water

½ tsp. Paprika (optional)

Romesco Sauce

2 tbsp. Olive Oil

2 Red Bell Peppers

1 cup Roasted Cashews, Almonds or Pecans

2 tbsp. Tomato Paste (optional)

½ tsp. Kosher Salt

Serving

2oz. Manchego Cheese

4 cups Vegetable or Cottonseed Oil (for deep frying)

2 tbsp. Za’atar spice mix

Torn Parsley, Baby Sorrel or Edible Flowers to Garnish (optional)

Method

Combine all Squash Blossom Stuffing ingredients and mix well. Spoon into a piping bag ready for use. You can also prepare this mixture ahead, resting in the fridge 2 hours or overnight to infuse the flavour of your lemon and olive into the cheese.
Roast whole Bell Peppers over the grill or open stove gas flame to completely blacken the skin (aim to see zero red flesh). This will roast and smoke the flesh. Don’t worry we will remove the blackened skin before using. Once complete, place in a bowl covered tightly with cling film and rest for 30 minutes to sweat, shrivel and sweeten the flesh.
Once rested, peel off the blackened skin which will remove easily. Tear open and remove seeds and core. Place in a food processor with Roasted Cashews, Roasted Bell Pepper, Olive Oil and Tomato Sauce (optional) in a Food Processor until smooth (for added texture, don’t completely puree Cashew Nuts.

To prepare Squash Blossoms:

Pipe the stuffing into the opening of your squash blossom flower. As the flower become full, fold the blossom petals shut so they meet at one point. Twist the tips of the petals at the top of the squash blossom to completely seal closed and align on a baking sheet.

To prepare Tempura Batter:

Preheat a shallow pot with frying oil to 375ºF/ 180ºC. Whisk Flour and Sparkling Water together vigorously. (Only do this directly before frying to retain the fizz and a nice puffy batter). Delicately dip Squash Blossoms in Tempura Batter to coat. Allow excess to drip off and lower (away from yourself) into the hot oil. Allow to golden for approx. 3-4 minutes. Drain on absorbent paper towel and season with Salt and Pepper.
Warm the Romesco Sauce in a small saucepan before serving, provide a generous serving spoon (3-4 tbsp.) per person and top with fried Squash Blossom.
Additional garnishing might include grated Manchego Cheese (optional), a sprinkle of Za’atar Middle Eastern spice mix, Micro herbs or Edible Flowers

What to Sip with Squash Blossoms

In my opinion this delectable dish delivers so much flavor so why decide to complicate it. As you use your oozing Squash Blossoms to mop up the romesco and grated manchego clean simply reach for intermittent sips of a crisp and crunchy Topo Chico Agua Seltzer. For the uninitiated, Topo Chico is a 125 year old legendary Mexican mineral water. In this instance, it’s all you need to cleanse the palette before asking chef for another round.

If you are considering an adult beverage to pair, I suggest uncorking a bright and zingy white wine. For the adventurous, set out to find Alberiño, a famous Spanish white varietal originating from in the temperate Northwest province of Galicia. Alberiño makes up 90% of the grapes grown in the region. Wines from this region are often labelled as Rías Baixas DO (Denominación de Origen), referring to the official designation of origin. This cool-to-temperate maritime-influenced valley rarely exceeds 30ºC/ 86ºF, producing wines with light, elegant structure and bright notes of fresh orange citrus, honey and stone fruit.