Squash Blossoms

In a recent episode of Iron Chef America on the Food Network, they had Battle Zucchini. It was neat to see all the uses for Squash. One of the things I though was really interesting was the Squash Blossoms. They were stuffed and fried. Since I have squash I thought we could give them a try.

WOW, they were really good. It was a little strange when we prepared them, but we were fighting over the last one. Even our young kids liked them. The recipe we used is below. We used an premade bagged batter instead of making it from scratch. It is your choice.

Enjoy!

Squash Blossoms

Ingredients

• 1 tb Olive oil
• 2 tb Small-diced red pepper
• 2 tb Small-diced zucchini
• 2 tb Small-diced red shiitake
• 2 tb Small-diced onions
• 1/2 c Ricotta cheese
• 1/4 c Grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 Egg; beaten
• Salt; to taste
• Freshly-ground black pepper;
• 8 Squash blossoms
• Oil; for deep frying

=== TEMPURA BATTER ===

• 1 lb Flour -; (3 cups)
• 1/2 lb Cornstarch -; (1 1/2 cups)
• 2 tb Baking powder
• 1 tb Baking soda
• 1 ts Salt
• 2 Eggs; beaten
• 1 c Ice cubes
• 1 1/2 c Club soda; or less
• 1/4 c Flour; for dredging

Instructions

Heat the olive oil in a medium saute pan, add the diced vegetables and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 2 minutes. In a bowl, combine the vegetables, cheeses and egg. Adjust the seasonings. Set aside. Carefully clean the squash blossoms free of dirt and split the squash end in half lengthwise (not cutting it free from the blossom) to open it up for better cooking. Open the blossom end and divide the filling among the blossoms, closing the end back up after it has been stuffed. Prepare the coulis and tempura batter.

Tempura Batter: Combine all the dry ingredients in a bowl. With a whisk, work in the eggs, ice cubes and 1 cup of the club soda until you reach a thick, bubbly, pancake batter-like consistency. Heat the oil for deep frying. Carefully dredge the stuffed blossoms in 1/4 cup flour, shaking off the excess. Dip them individually into the batter, and into the fryer. Turn them gently as they fry. Fry until golden and hot in the middle, about 5 minutes. This recipe yields 2 entree portions or 4 appetizer portions.

Recipe Source: ESSENCE OF EMERIL with Emeril Lagasse From the TV FOOD NETWORK - (Show # EE-2175 broadcast 05-19-1997) Downloaded from their Web-Site - http://www.foodtv.com Formatted for MasterCook by Joe Comiskey, aka MR MAD - jpmd44a@prodigy.com ~or- MAD-SQUAD@prodigy.net 06-05-1997 Recipe by: Emeril Lagasse Converted by MM_Buster v2.0l.

Copied From: http://www.bigoven.com/126101-Stuffed-Squash-Blossoms-recipe.html