May 09 2010
Stuffed Blossoms and Watermelon-Champagne Cocktail for Mother’s Day
The first thing that comes to mind about what to give our Moms on Mother’s Day is flowers. That is lovely and all, but why not step it up a notch and give her edible flowers? We want to celebrate all the moms out there on this joyous occasion and share a fun recipe that we created using the squash and zucchini blossoms from our garden. These are edible flowers that are great to stuff, and perfect for quick frying. And of course, the green, yellow, and orange hue of these blossoms are just so pretty! We stuffed it with a blend of ricotta cheese, pancetta, basil, pineapple sage, and chives. To go along with this dish, we served it with a refreshing Watermelon-Champagne cocktail that is sure to please mom! We hope everyone is enjoying Mother’s Day today and remember to make it special!
It is a delight to see our zucchini and squash blossoms in our garden! We cut about a dozen blossoms for our recipe.
We didn't cut any of the blossoms where the zucchini has actually started growing. This is what you call the 'female blossom.' The male blossoms are attached to a thin stem.
You can see the difference between a squash blossom and a zucchini blossom. The top row of flowers are more cone-shaped and these are the squash blossoms. The two rows below are the zucchini blossoms which twists at the top.
To make the ricotta mixture, we combined 12 oz. ricotta cheese, 7 slices of Pancetta that has been cooked to a crisp, 7 basil leaves chiffonade, 5 pineapple sage leaves, 1/2 tbsp chopped chives, 1/4 tsp pepper and 1/4 tsp salt.
We actually made more filling than we needed, since we only had 15 blossoms. But leftovers are great because you can use this mixture to stuff other vegetables, or even to make lasagna.
I thoroughly washed and cleaned the blossoms before stuffing them. You have to make sure there are no bugs in the flowers! Stuff enough so that you can partially close the tips of the flowers.
Once they've all been stuffed, it's time to get the batter and oil ready.
This is a basic tempera batter mix that we used to coat the blossoms.
Deep fry the blossoms in 350-degree vegetable oil until the outside is slightly golden. This only takes about 1-2 minutes.
To make the Watermelon-Champagne, we blended 5 cups of watermelon cubes on high until smooth. Then we strained it with a sieve until we yielded 2 cups of juice.
In a pitcher, we combined 2 2/3 cup Champagne, 1/2 cup vodka, 1/4 cup triple sec, 3 tbsp fresh lime juice, and 1/4 cup fresh mint leaves. Then we poured in the watermelon juice. Stir this together and refrigerate before serving.
Because the flowers are so delicate, it is best to batter and deep fry them so it keeps its shape and form. The ricotta mixture provides a smooth creamy texture in the inside, with a crunchy crisp on the outside. It's a beautiful combination of textures and flavors that is sure to impress mom.
The little blossoms are a great snack, but together with the Watermelon-Champagne Cocktail, it makes this meal just perfect! Cheers to all the great moms out there! Happy Mother's Day!
To view or print-out this recipe, click here: Stuffed Blossoms with Ricotta and Pancetta and Watermelon-Champagne Cocktail from Epicurious.com
[...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by The Food Addicts, The Food Addicts. The Food Addicts said: The Food Addicts Presents!: Stuffed Blossoms and Watermelon-Champagne Cocktail for Mother's Day http://bit.ly/bkXaOL [...]
What a wonderful post! I love your beautiful pictures and thoughtful recipes/ideas. Thank you for sharing!
Oh, this is divine! I wish I had a garden full of squash and zucchini so that I had blossoms! I adore this recipe. Just gorgeous!
.-= Liren {Kitchen Worthy}´s last blog ..A Toast to Beauty =-.
Simply marvelous! Creative idea and beautiful execution! Thanks for sharing!
.-= Suzee´s last blog ..DBDG and The Lower East Side =-.
Wow! Very impressive~ I would love to have been at your table for Mother’s Day.
Yummy!!!
This is so beautiful. I think squash blossoms are one of the most lovely foods to work with. The watermelon champagne cocktail is a great color contrast too. Just a truely gorgeous plate!
This sounds so lovely for Mother’s day! Stuffed blossoms sound just perfect with the watermelon-champagne cocktail!
.-= 5 Star Foodie´s last blog ..Family Bites: Veal Stew with Sockarooni Sauce and Hot Buttered Noodles =-.
Where do you guys find these cool creative recipes? That’s so cool!
I m so in lobe with this… It surely crunchy…
.-= Chef Nash´s last blog ..Cake from obcces for Brunei Foodies v.Pink =-.
oh wow. these look incredible. MasterChef dish!
.-= Simon Food Favourites´s last blog ..Bacco Pasticceria: Coffee Eclair, Chifley Plaza, Sydney (10 May 2010) =-.
I love those photos of the squash and zucchini blossoms, and the differences in how they look
.-= tigerfish´s last blog ..Bitter Melon Tomato Curry =-.
I’ve never actually tried zucchini flowers but they look really delicious and pretty! I’ll have to try one day. The ricotta mix inside sounds nice too, with the contrast as you said between the ricotta and the crispy batter. Delish!
.-= Katie´s last blog ..It’s Been Nearly A Month… =-.
what a fancy-shmancy feast! the cocktail is just lovely, and the stuffed blossoms look beautiful and delicious. the filling, the frying, the flowers–it’s an amazing creation!
.-= grace´s last blog ..cake mix kick =-.
Oh how lovely! What a gorgeous, beautiful feast for Mom.
Thanks for showing the difference between the two flowers. That is helpful to know! 
.-= Krista´s last blog ..Sunshiny Days and French Toast with Toasted Prosciutto =-.
Fantastic recipe! I can’t wait until our squash blossoms start to bloom. This will definitely be on my list to try.
what a beautiful recipes and presentation!!! I’ll be making stuffed zucchini blossoms soon
Oh my!! Those look fabulous!! i can not wait to try these once my zucchini starts blooming!! Yum!!
.-= tree´s last blog ..Munching on Sweet violets. =-.
Those are beautiful. I knew flowers are ediable but I didn’t think you could deep fry them.
Wow, squash blossom, already?! I just planted my first few rows of seeds this weekend and we have more snow on the way. What a lovely recipe.
.-= Liz Marr, MS, RD´s last blog ..Can I Make Backyard Vegetable Garden More Local? =-.
Wow these look fantastic – not just delicious, but the photos are stunning too. I am amazed you have squash blossoms at the same time your chives are blooming.
I LOVE squash and zucchini blossoms! So delicious. Can’t wait to make the first of the season for me : ) And I’d adore having a glass of that watermelon champagne cocktail!
What a delightful treat! I have yet to see zucchini blossoms in any markets here, but will be sure to try this if I do.
This is a beautiful meal! and edible flowers is a great idea for Mother’s Day
.-= noobcook´s last blog ..Green Curry Pasta =-.
Hi, Krissy and Daniel. Great post and certainly a #1 dish – good for you! Dan
This is such a lovely recipe!
Very beautiful recipe and it’s so great you grew your own! GREG
congrats on top nine and this awesome garden to table meal!
.-= ravenouscouple´s last blog ..Che Xoi Nuoc Mochi Dumpling Ginger Sauce =-.
Absolutely gorgeous. I WISH I had a garden too because these blossoms sound fantastic.
.-= Kelly´s last blog ..Gougeres with Honey =-.
Wow, what a fantastic idea/recipe. The blossoms were gorgeous before and after you cooked them. Stunning! Thanks for sharing and congrats on making today’s top 9! :>)
.-= Lynn´s last blog ..Top Contributor Award =-.
It’s nice to be Top 9 on Foodbuzz! Thanks for your support, everyone! Who would’ve thought flowers could be so fun to cook?
Hello! This is great! Very interesting presentation and new information. I like those “flowers” a lot, but unfortunately I do not have many occasions to eat them. Even here, in Paris, it is difficult to buy them; and in Poland – where I come from – the same. That is why I rather enjoy them in the restaurant (I do not have my own garden , so I cannot plant them). Good day!
.-= Magdalena´s last blog ..Green Asparagus and Polish Style Gnocchi (Kopytka) with Green Sauce =-.
That’s beautiful! I’ll save your recipe for mothers day in Sweden, which is in the fall
.-= Linn @ Swedish home cooking´s last blog ..Swedish Home Cooking "Swedish Meatballs" =-.
Looks delicious!
It must be nice to have all that warm weather for growing veggies!
Here in vancouver it’s just getting warm enough to put out my seedlings for the season!
Hopefully i can try this recipe by august!! =)
.-= Amanda´s last blog ..Vancouver Baker’s Market =-.
What a nice meal for Mother’s Day…love them both…the stuffed blossoms are awesome and the watermelon cocktail looks so refreshing
great post, I love your filling..they look great and from your backyard..nice..the cocktail is sublime..yum
sweetlife
.-= sweetlife´s last blog ..Happy Cinco De Mayo!!! =-.
This is freakin awesome, my Mum would love this! She’s a big fan of watermelon juice, and champagne, so the cocktail is a total winner, and I am sure she’d love the stuffed blossoms too. What a clever way to give your Mum flowers! I’m never in the same city as my Mum for Mothers’ Day, but these recipes make me want to drive to see her next year just so I can make these for her!
.-= Conor @ HoldtheBeef´s last blog ..International Dumpling Incident – Zwetschkenknödel =-.
The fried stuffed blossoms are just awesome, no doubt they deserved the Top9, congrats!
.-= TasteHongKong´s last blog ..Paprika and White Pepper Cream Sauce with Fish Fillets =-.
I simply love squash blossoms. I am not sure where could i find them, I do not see them for sale on markets at least he in Miami (Florida). the watermelon drink looks lovely!
.-= Miami Culinary Tours´s last blog ..Mandolin Aegean Bistro (Design District) Miami =-.
It’s posts like this that keep me coming back and checking this site regularly, thanks for the info!
Tried these tonight! Just fabulous. I would love to have your tempura recipe. The one I used was great, but yours looks a little lighter.