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| The zucchini blossoms waiting to be cooked. |
By Linda Felaco
Squash blossom lovers know that you have to take advantage of the short time of year that they're available, from mid- to late summer. So this morning while the blossoms were wide open (meaning you can check to make sure there are no pollinators inside before picking them), I harvested several blossoms from the garden to have for lunch. See here for an illustrated tutorial on how to harvest the male blossoms and leave the females on the plant.
We fried the blossoms last time (see here), so this time we decided to sautée them along with the zucchini.
Since I wasn't planning to cook them right away, I laid a paper towel on a plate, put the blossoms on the plate with another paper towel on top (to prevent them from getting soggy), and stuck them in the fridge till lunchtime.
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| Almost ready to eat. |
First, I prepared a salad of Bibb lettuce and yellow cherry tomatoes from our garden, a bit of onion from Briarfield Farm on Shannock Road, chunks of Bergenost cheese, extra-virgin olive oil,
balsamic vinegar, and sea salt.
To make the zucchini and blossoms, we melted a quarter of a stick of butter* in a sautée pan and added three cloves of crushed garlic from the farm stand by the horse farm on Old Coach Road. If the zucchini are large, cut them in half before slicing. Add them to the pan and let them cook about halfway before adding the blossoms. Stir frequently to prevent sticking. Buon appetito!
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* Yes, butter. As explained in the video Tom posted recently, consuming fats along with vegetables ensures maximum absorption of fat-soluble vitamins. Otherwise, you'll literally just piss most of them away.