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    You Are Here Home » Vegetarian Recipes

    Published: Aug 10, 2021 Updated: Sep 29, 2021 by Hilda Sterner | This post may contain affiliate links 4 Comments

    Cheese-Stuffed Zucchini Flowers

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    cheese-stuffed zucchini flowers pin

    These gorgeous Zucchini Blossoms are stuffed with cheese, lightly battered, and pan-fried to perfection. The delicate flavor of Stuffed Zucchini Flowers is hard to describe or compare to anything else. They really must be tried to be truly appreciated. If you have an abundance of Zucchini, try my Low-Carb Zucchini Lasagna too!

    Jump to:
    • 🍴Why This Recipe Works
    • 📝 What Goes Into This Recipe
    • 🥘 Recipe Ingredients and Substitutions
    • 🔪 How to Make Cheese-Stuffed Zucchini Flowers
    • 🤷🏻‍♀️ Recipe FAQs
    • 👩🏼‍🍳 Pro Tips
    • 🍲 Related Recipes
    • 📖 Recipe
    • 💬 Comments

    🍴Why This Recipe Works

    You don't have to travel to Italy to enjoy cheese-stuffed zuccini flowers. This recipe is simple, delicious, and a great way to make use of those gorgeous Zucchini flowers that might be taking over your garden at the moment. Instead of letting the zucchini flowers die on the plant, make a unique and delicious appetizer with them instead!

    You won't find zucchini flowers at your local grocery store so if you don't garden, find a friend who does and ask them to harvest the flowers for you.

    📝 What Goes Into This Recipe

    🥘 Recipe Ingredients and Substitutions

    • Zucchini Blossoms: Sometimes zucchini blossoms or flowers can be purchased in ethnic markets. Farmer's markets are also great places to check. However, if possible, grow your own zucchinis and you'll have an endless supply of blossoms!
    • Cheese: There are many cheese options that you can choose from. Ricotta cheese is a popular choice, as is Mozzarella and Parmigiano Reggiano. I like to include a few kinds of cheese to enhance the flavor and texture. Think about including goat cheese, Feta, pecorino cheese, or Halloumi cheese.
    • Batter: The batter can be as simple as flour and water, or as fancy as a beer batter. I decided to include an egg and water in my batter. If you prefer, you can use milk instead of water.
    • Mix-Ins: The cheese mixture is delicious as is. I couldn't leave it alone, however. 😬I added a clove of garlic and I'm so glad I did! At the last minute, I decided to add some chives from my garden. You can also add your favorite fresh herbs including basil, mint, or fresh lemon zest.
    • Seasoning: I lightly seasoned the batter with salt and black pepper since Asiago cheese (in the filling) is already salty. I was very close to adding some freshly grated nutmeg but didn't. I'm sure it would be amazing if added!

    🔪 How to Make Cheese-Stuffed Zucchini Flowers

    STEP 1: Remove the Stigma or Stamen from the blossoms, then gently wash and pat them dry.

    Remove the male Stamen (on the left) or female Stigma (on the right).
    Wash and dry zucchini blossoms

    STEP 2: Whisk batter ingredients into a bowl until combined. The batter should have a pancake-like consistency. Allow to rest while you work on the filling.

    adding eggs to a bowl of flour
    adding salt and pepper to a bowl of flour and eggs
    Adding water to batter ingredients
    whisking batter inside a glass jar

    STEP 3: Mix stuffing ingredients in a medium bowl until smooth. Carefully stuff the flowers using a small spoon, do not to over-fill them. Twist the flower petals to keep the filling from seeping out.

    mixing cheeses in a bowl
    cheese filling mix in a glass bowl
    cheese and chive mix in a bowl
    stuffing flowers with cheese mix
    zucchini flower stuffed with cheese

    STEP 4: Heat oil into a shallow pan. Hold flowers by the stem and quickly dip them into the batter, allowing the excess to drain back into the batter bowl. Fry blossoms in batches until golden brown on both sides. This should take approximately 2 minutes of frying time per side.

    cheese stuffed zucchini being dipped in batter
    cheese stuffed zucchini dipped in batter
    stuffed zucchini flowers being fried
    fried stuffed zucchini flowers

    Tip: Once you flip the flower to the other side, the second side may require less time to fry.

    STEP 5: Drain the fried stuffed zucchini flowers on a paper towel-covered dish and serve while warm!

    zucchini flowers draining on paper towels
    Cheese-Stuffed Zucchini Flowers draining of papertowels
    cheese-stuffed zucchini flowers
    Cheese-Stuffed Zucchini Blossoms

    🤷🏻‍♀️ Recipe FAQs

    Is the flower of zucchini edible?

    Yes, the flowers of most squash are edible. Although zucchini flowers can be eaten raw, they taste much better when battered and fried.

    stuffed zucchini flowers on a plate


    Do you have to wash zucchini flowers?

    Zucchini flowers may contain pests from the garden, including bees and ants. Not to mention, dirt and debris. Before consuming, give the open flowers a quick rinse under cool running water. Gently pat dry before using in your recipe.

    ants inside of zucchini flowers

    How can you tell if a zucchini flower is male or female?

    It is easy to identify whether a zucchini flower is male or female. For one thing, female flowers are usually much bigger than male flowers.

    Although male and female flowers look alike, the male flowers have a stem attached to the end of them, while the female flowers have a growing zucchini attached to them.

    In the photo below, the flower on the left is a male flower, while the flower on the right is a female flower and has a zucchini growing behind the flower.

    male and female zucchini flowers

    👩🏼‍🍳 Pro Tips

    • Some people leave the Stigma or Stamen intact while others choose to remove them. It's really a matter of preference, but they are easier to stuff if they are removed.
    • There is nothing that says you can't pick female flowers, especially if the zucchini is already growing behind the flower. When I am short of flowers, I've been known to pick both.
    • If you don't have enough zucchini blossoms to stuff, go out to your garden every morning and pick the ones that are open. Store them in the refrigerator in a plastic bag until you have enough to make this recipe.
    • If serving as an appetizer, sprinkle the fried zucchini flowers with shaved parmessean cheese and chopped chives before serving.
    • Rehead leftovers in a toaster oven or an air fryer until heated through.
    Store zucchini flowers in a ziplock bag until ready to use
    stuffed zucchini flowers on a blue plate
    Delicious cheese-stuffed zucchini flowers

    🍲 Related Recipes

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      Zucchini and Corn Fritters with Dipping Sauce
    • low carb lasagna
      Low Carb Zucchini Lasagna
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    Love this recipe? Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟rating in the recipe card below & a review in the comments section further down the page.

    Stay in touch with me through social media @ Instagram, Pinterest, TikTok, and Facebook. Don't forget to tag me when you try one of my recipes!

    📖 Recipe

    cheese stuffed zucchini flowers

    Cheese-Stuffed Zucchini Flowers

    Delicate Zucchini Flowers (blossoms) filled with creamy cheese, lightly battered, then fried.
    4.75 from 4 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Appetizer, Snack
    Cuisine: Italian
    Prep Time: 20 minutes
    Cook Time: 10 minutes
    Total Time: 30 minutes
    Servings: 14 flowers
    Calories: 58kcal
    Author: Hilda Sterner

    Equipment

    • skillet

    Ingredients

    • 14 zucchini flowers (approximate number)

    Egg Batter

    • 1 large egg
    • ½ cup water
    • ½ cup all-purpose flour
    • pinch sea salt
    • pinch black pepper

    Cheese Filling

    • 3 ounces softened cream cheese
    • ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
    • 2 tablespoon shredded Asiago cheese
    • 1 clove garlic (pressed)
    • 1 tablespoon minced chives (optional)

    Misc

    • ⅓ cup peanut oil (for frying)

    Instructions

    • Remove the Stigma or Stamen from the blossoms, then gently wash and pat them dry.
    • Whisk batter ingredients into a bowl until combined. The batter should have a pancake-like consistency. Allow to rest while you work on the filling.
    • Mix filling ingredients until smooth. Carefully divide the filling between the flowers, being careful not to over-fill them. Twist the flower petals to keep the filling from seeping out.
    • Heat oil into a shallow pan. Hold flowers by the stem and quickly dip into the batter, allowing the excess to drain back into the batter bowl. Fry blossoms until golden on both sides. This should take approximately 2 minutes of frying time per side.
    • Drain the fried stuffed zucchini flowers on paper towels and serve while warm!

    Notes

    Calories are for unfried stuffed zucchini flowers. This is because it's hard to predict how much oil will be absorbed once the flowers are fried. Other factors come into play, for example, oil temperature.
     
    • Some people leave the Stigma or Stamen intact while others choose to remove them. It's really a matter of preference, but they are easier to stuff if they are removed.
    • There is nothing that says you can't pick female flowers, especially if the zucchini is already growing behind the flower. When I am short of flowers, I've been known to pick both.
    • If you don't have enough zucchini blossoms to stuff, go out to your garden every morning and pick the ones that are open. Store them in the refrigerator in a plastic bag until you have enough to make this recipe.
    • If serving as an appetizer, sprinkle the fried zucchini flowers with shaved parmessean cheese and chopped chives before serving.
    • Rehead leftovers in a toaster oven or an air fryer until heated through.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1flower | Calories: 58kcal | Carbohydrates: 4g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 23mg | Sodium: 69mg | Fiber: 0g | Sugar: 0g
    Tried this Recipe? Please leave A Star Rating!Mention @HildasKitchenBlog or tag #HildasKitchenBlog!

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    1. MjL says

      July 22, 2022 at 9:55 pm

      5 stars
      This is a great, easy recipe. Didn't have peanut oil, subbing with olive oil. The stuffing can be played with in combos or singles. I liked the no milk batter. Thank you for keeping it simple and flavorful.

      Reply
      • Hilda Sterner says

        July 22, 2022 at 10:04 pm

        Hi, Thank you so much for coming back to leave a review. I was just looking at the zucchini flowers in my garden today and thinking to myself, I need to make some stuffed zucchini flowers. I need to get busy!

        Reply
    2. Kim says

      August 13, 2021 at 4:57 pm

      5 stars
      The cheese stuffed zucchini flowers were fantastic. My husband and I were lucky enough to have Hilda make these for us. What a treat. I'm sure anyone who tries them will love them.

      Reply
      • Hilda Sterner says

        August 13, 2021 at 5:36 pm

        Thank you, Kim! I really appreciate you taking the time to do a review and glad you enjoyed them! 😘

        Reply

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