Stuffed Squash Blossoms

Guess what I found at the grocery store this weekend??  Squash blossoms!  I've wanted to play with these for the longest time, but it seems like I always miss the season.  Not this year!  And after playing around online looking up every squash blossom recipe known to man, I decided to just throw a bunch of yummy stuff together and see what happened.  What resulted was good, pretty tasty, but I just felt like the blossoms got lost.  The filling was good, and the batter was crispy, but it seemed a waste of such a fragile tidbit.  I think I may become a fan of raw stuffed squash blossoms.

Stuffed Squash Blossoms

8 ounces whole milk ricotta
½ cup grated Parmesan
1 large egg yolk
Grated rind of ½ lemon
2 cloves black garlic, mashed
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil
½ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
12 squash blossoms, rinsed and stamen removed
1 cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon sea salt
¼ teaspoon paprika
1 cup club soda
Canola oil, for frying
Pesto or tomato sauce, for serving

Combine ricotta, Parmesan, egg yolk, lemon rind, garlic, basil, and salt and pepper in a medium bowl.  Spoon into a quart-size Ziploc bag, and cut a corner off of the bag.  Squeeze the filling down towards the cut corner and pipe the filling down into each blossom, leaving about an inch of petals exposed at the top.  Twist the exposed petals to close the blossoms.  Set aside.

Combine the flour, salt, and paprika.  Whisk in the club soda until a smooth batter forms.

Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat with about an inch of oil in the bottom.  When oil is hot, dip each stuffed blossom down into the batter until completed covered, then lightly tap off excess.  Lay in the hot oil and cook for 3 to 5 minutes, or until light brown.  When the first side of the blossom has browned, flip it over to finish cooking on the other side, another 3 to 5 minutes.  Remove the browned blossoms from the pan and drain on a paper towel.  Serve with pesto or tomato sauce.

Makes 4 to 6 servings