Family Portrait

Sweet Pumpkin Fritter

A sugar pumpkin flower dipped in sweet batter, fried and dusted with cinnamon and icing sugar. Yum.

This time I found the end had a slight bitter taste. I gathered the flowers a little later after drunken bees had wedged themselves into the middle. I gently shook them out of the flower. But I wonder if this was why the ends were slightly bitter - just a touch. It was hardly noticeable.

However, I'm removing the stamens now, just in case.

Pumpkin Flower Pesto

100 gr salted butter or half cup

1 clove garlic, sliced

200 gr pumpkin flowers, cleaned and destemmed (about 50)

50 gr Parmigiano Reggiano

Salt and pepper to taste

Melt butter over low heat and add garlic. Cook until soft but not brown. Put flowers and chunks of Parmigiano Reggiano into the blender. Add melted butter and garlic. Process until smooth.

At this point, I put it into the freezer as we were not going to eat it for a while. I'll find out if this completely destroys the flavour.

The pesto was smooth and tasty but needed something to elevate it.

When I will use it, I'll mince a little fresh sage and cook gently in butter. I'll add it to the pumpkin pesto along with freshly ground pepper. The minced sage flecks should add another dimension to the dish.