Stuffed courgette flowers
- Starter
- Medium
- 2
- 60 minutes
PT1H
Stuffed courgette flowers, in this case stuffed with ricotta, sultanas and pine nuts, look incredible and Dominic Chapman's dish makes a great light starter. Courgettes remain attached to their flowers in the early stage of their growth and therefore the season for courgette flower dishes is fleeting. Make the most of the season with this glorious courgette flowers recipe.
Ingredients
Stuffed courgette flowers
- 2 courgette flowers
- 2 tbsp of courgette , finely diced
- 30g of pine nuts
- 40g of sultanas
- 500g of buffalo ricotta
- 20g of fresh basil , roughly chopped
- 1 lemon , juiced
- salt
- pepper
Vinaigrette
- 2 tbsp of Dijon mustard
- 2 tbsp of white wine vinegar
- 65ml of vegetable oil
- 65ml of olive oil
- salt
- pepper
Garnish
- 1 tbsp of salt
- 2g of sultanas
- 2g of pine nuts
- 2g of fresh peas
- 1 tbsp of tomato purée
- 1 baby artichoke
- 2 tbsp of sherry vinegar
- 5 baby beetroots
- 1 tomato , diced
- 5g of fresh basil
- 5g of fresh chervil
- 1/2 lemon , juice
- olive oil
Equipment
- Piping bag and nozzle
Method
1
Start by toasting the pine nuts for the courgette flowers. Place the pine nuts in a dry, hot pan and heat until they start to pop. Remove from the heat and set aside
- 30g of pine nuts
2
Place the sultanas in a pan and cover with water. Bring to the boil and then turn off the heat. Leave the sultanas to soak in the pan for 10 minutes before straining
- 40g of sultanas
3
Combine the diced courgette and ricotta in a bowl and then add the soaked sultanas and pine nuts
- 500g of buffalo ricotta
- 2 tbsp of courgette
4
Add the basil and squeeze lemon juice into the bowl to taste. Season to taste
- 20g of fresh basil
- 1 lemon
- salt
- pepper
5
To prepare the courgette flowers, gently remove the stamen from inside and cut the tip off the opposite end. Scoop the mixture into a piping bag and then pipe into both of the courgette flowers. Set aside
- 2 courgette flowers
6
For the vinaigrette, combine the mustard, salt and pepper in a bowl. Gradually whisk in the oils in a slow, steady stream until emulsified. Adjust seasoning again and if not sweet enough balance with sugar
- 2 tbsp of Dijon mustard
- salt
- pepper
- 65ml of vegetable oil
- 65ml of olive oil
7
Dress the diced tomato, sultanas, pine nuts, peas in the vinaigrette
8
In a separate bowl, combine the sherry vinegar and tomato purée. Season with salt and pepper and set aside
- 1 tbsp of tomato purée
- 2 tbsp of sherry vinegar
- salt
- pepper
9
Clean and prepare the baby artichoke. Place in a pan and cover with water, add the lemon juice, and salt. Slowly bring to the boil for 3 minutes, remove from the heat and allow to cool in the liquid before cutting into quarters
- 1 baby artichoke
- 1/2 lemon
- 1 tbsp of salt
10
Add a little oil to a frying pan placed over a medium-high heat. Add the sliced artichokes into the pan and fry until golden brown all over
- 65ml of olive oil
11
Bring a pot of water to the boil. For the baby beetroot, clean off the stems leaving 1cm for presentation purposes. Blanch the beetroots. Allow to cool slightly before carefully peeling with a small knife and cutting into quarters
12
Dress the beetroots and artichokes in the vinaigrette
13
Place the courgette flowers in an oven set to 200°C/gas mark 5 and cook for 6 minutes or until the courgette flowers are starting to soften
14
To serve, spoon the tomato purée across the centre of both plates and lay the courgette flowers on top. Garnish with the dressed beetroots, diced tomato, artichoke, peas, sultanas, pine nuts and some fresh basil and chervil
- 5g of fresh chervil
- 5g of fresh basil
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Stuffed courgette flowers
