Baby Green Zucchini with Flower
Estimated Inventory, 5 lbs : 0
Description/Taste
Baby Green zucchini blossoms are fragile, yet as long as they are attached to the fruit of the plant, the fruit will extend the blossom's shelf-life. The tissue paper thin blossoms are faintly fuzzed, light weight and once mature their broad and pointed flower petals will close inward. The blossom's coloring is vibrant orange at its tip, with variegations of gold and green running along the petals to its stem end. Their flavor is subtle and similar to that of the zucchini, slightly sweet, grassy and succulent. The fruit of the baby Green zucchini is lean, petit and cylindrical. Its skin is glossy and deep green in color with faint cream freckles. Its flesh is crisp and creamy with an underdeveloped seed cavity due to its youth. Its flavor, peppery and complex with grassy undertones, creating a perfect contrast to the more subtle flavors of the flower.
Seasons/Availability
Baby Green zucchini with flower is available year-round with a peak season in spring and summer months.
Current Facts
Baby Green zucchini squash is of the species, Cucurbita pepo. Green zucchini is the classic summer squash and easily the most grown of all summer squashes. Baby Green zucchini blossoms are the female fruit-bearing flower of squash plants. The male flower, known as macho blossom, grows directly from the stem of the plant's trailing vines and pollinates the female blossoms.
Nutritional Value
Squash blossoms are very low in calories offering only about five calories per cup of flowers. The blossoms are also low in carbohydrates and protein and offer some calcium, iron, vitamin C and vitamin A.
Applications
Baby Green zucchini with flower can be prepared raw or cooked. The blossoms can easily be removed from the stem of the fruit, allowing for dual preparations. Both raw blossoms and sliced zucchini can be added to salads, served as crudité or simply eaten fresh out of hand. The most common way to serve the blossoms cooked is to stuff with a soft cheese and pan or deep fry. The blossoms and the fruit can be chopped and added to risotto and pasta, used as a filling for tacos and quesadillas, or cooked atop pizza, casseroles and quiche. The flavor of baby Green zucchini with flower pairs well with tomatoes, garlic, red bell pepper, stewed pork, black beans, cilantro, pine nuts, olive oil, ricotta cheese, and light bodied vinegars. Both the extremely delicate blossoms and the attached squash have a very short shelf life, if you must wash the blossoms do so very carefully or simply look over and remove debris with a gentle touch. They should be used immediately or to store keep in a dry and air tight container in the refrigerator for one or two days.
Ethnic/Cultural Info
Evidence of squash blossoms can be found in artwork that dates back to the 16th century, specifically in the famous painting entitled, “The Fruit Seller” by Vincenzo Campi of 1580. The painting depicts a female fruit vender in the Italian street market surrounded by fruit and vegetables and in the upper right hand corner of the painting there is a box which clearly contains squash with flower blossoms attached.
Geography/History
While squash dates back to pre-Columbian times the zucchini specifically was developed first in Italy with documentation of it dating back to a 1901 seed pamphlet from Milan. Italian immigrants brought zucchini with them to the United States during World War I and it quickly caught on as a popular produce item appearing in seed catalogs, in the Los Angeles Times and on the menu at the premiere restaurant in Los Angeles at the time, Café Marcell. Like many summer squashes green zucchini will thrive and be a prolific fruiter provided they are grown in rich, well-drained soil and given full sun and warm weather. Dubbed “garden overachievers” plants have a tendency to take over a garden and produce a surplus of squashes, flowers that are plucked prior to pollination will help curb production of the plant. Squash blossoms are best harvested early in the morning when their blossoms are open, harvesting later in the day after the blossoms have closed can result in harvesting a blossom that has trapped an insect inside.
Recipe Ideas
Recipes that include Baby Green Zucchini with Flower. One
is easiest, three is harder.
