Zucchini Flowers w/Fresh Mozz and Basil

I have often been curious of zucchini flowers. They seem so delicate that I was intimidated to try recipes that involved stuffing them. It seemed like too much work for such a small bite. With lots of male zucchini flowers in the garden, I just couldn't let them go to waste.



Ingredients:

• Zucchini flowers (with or without stems)
• Basil leaves
• Fresh Mozzarella cheese
• Olive Oil
• Batter
  

Snip some zucchini flowers by the stem with a pair of scissors. If the flowers fall off the stem, that's okay. You can still use them. Rinse out each flower and remove the stamen.


Cut up some fresh mozzarella into long chunky pieces. Wrap a basil leaf around the cheese.


Then stuff the flower with the cheese and basil. I knew this was going to taste delicious already!


Lay them aside and prepare your batter.


I couldn't find my tempura batter, so instead I used Bisquick, 1 egg and low fat milk. The batter should be very runny and just coat the flower.


In a non-stick pan (I use a wok for everything), add some olive oil and turn the heat up to medium. With your fingers, roll each stuffed flower in batter and gently place it into the oil.


After 2 minutes, turn each one to cook the other side. The stems come in handy when you are trying to turn each flower. Chopsticks make turning easier too.


Remove them from the pan and lay them on a paper towel. Arrange on a plate and serve! I arranged these into a "bouquet" of flowers with the basil leaves.



ENJOY!