Fried Zucchini Flowers

A delicious Italian appetizer!

On one of my first visits to Italy an Italian friend ordered appetizers. One of the appetizers was something I did not recognize. They told me the name in Italian, but I had no idea what it meant….so I thought, “Why not?!” And I tried it. I fell in love instantly with this delicious savory treat!

When I asked someone later what they were they told me flowers, which I thought was really strange. But there was no going back! They were just too good!

Recipe:

100 grams of flour (3/4 cup + 1 tablespoon)
100 grams of milk (3.5 fluid ounces)
1 egg
2-3 tablespoons of beer

Begin by making the batter. It needs to sit for 10 minutes after you mix it, so you can clean your flowers while your batter sits.

Mix 1 egg and 3.5 ounces of milk in a glass measuring cup. Beat lightly with a fork.

In a bowl measure 100 grams of flour. Slowly add your egg/milk mixture and mix with a fork until well blended (no clumps). Add your 2 tablespoons of beer and set your batter aside while you clean your flowers.

To prepare your flowers begin by delicately removing the stem and stigma from the flower without breaking the flower. When you have removed the internal parts of the flower, rinse them carefully with water and pat them dry.

Prepare a cookie sheet by covering it with paper towels to absorb the excess oil once the flower is fried.

Add cooking oil to a large pot (just enough to immerse your flower in) and turn the heat on to warm your oil.

Begin dipping and coating each flower. Be careful not to rip the flower to pieces as you coat it in the batter.

Once the flower is coated with the batter place it in the cooking oil with a spatula. Turn the flower regularly until both sides are golden brown. Remove the flower with a spatula and place on prepared pan to cool.

These are best when served hot and fresh! Enjoy!