Baked zucchini flowers with ricotta and mint

Carefully stuff the zucchini flowers with ricotta, mint and anchovy for a gorgeous roast vegetable that's soft and creamy.

• serves

  4

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  20 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 12 baby zucchini with their flowers
• 300 g firm ricotta
• 20 g freshly grated pecorino
• 1 egg
• pinch of ground nutmeg
• 3-4 mint leaves, chopped
• 4-5 anchovies, chopped
• 1 chilli, finely chopped
• sea salt, to taste
• 2-3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 200ºC. Line a baking tray with baking paper.

2. Carefully open up the zucchini flowers and remove the inside stem, being careful not to tear the flowers.

3. Place the ricotta, pecorino, egg, nutmeg, mint, anchovies and chilli in a bowl and stir to combine well. Taste for salt and adjust accordingly. Spoon the mixture into the flowers, being careful not to overfill them. Twist the petals to enclose the filling, then place onto the lined tray. Drizzle the olive oil over the flowers and the baby zucchini and bake for 20 minutes or until golden. Serve as is, or with crusty bread.

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Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.