Tracy Rutherford's tempura zucchini flowers

Serves 4

1 1/2 cups plain flour
1 egg yolk, lightly beaten
1 1/2 cups chilled water
olive oil for frying
16-20 zucchini flowers
2 lemons, quartered

1. Make the batter by quickly whisking together the flour, egg yolk and water to form a thin batter.

2. Heat a medium-sized frypan then add the olive oil so it’s about 3cm deep. When you think the oil is hot enough (tip: dip a wooden spoon handle into the oil – bubbles should form quickly) dip one zucchini flower into the batter and fry as a ‘test run’. It should cook quickly and turn golden brown in a minute or so, turning the flower just once with metal tongs. Drain on a paper towel. Once the oil is at a good cooking temperature, cook the zucchini in batches of 4 or 5, dipping each flower into the batter, then straight into the oil. Drain on paper towels. Serve as an entrée, with a quarter of lemon on the side of each dish.

Optional stuffings: the zucchini flowers are great on their own, but try them stuffed, too. Here’s a classic Italian-style stuffing mix: 
Combine 3/4 cup coarse breadcrumbs, 8 chopped anchovy fillets and 2 tablespoons chopped parsley in a bowl, season with salt and black pepper to taste, and spoon a little of this into each zucchini flower (just open up the petals and slip a bit of stuffing mix in with a teaspoon), prior to dipping in the batter.

Recipe by Tracy Rutherford, photo by Steve Brown

Copyright CTC Productions 2011