Tempura Zucchini Blossoms

These Tempura Zucchini Blossoms are crunchy, salty and delicious with a creamy herbed “cheese” filling. They’re AIP, paleo, vegan and the perfect appetizer.

Zucchini Flowers are such a treat! So beautiful and delicious and stuffing them really takes them up a notch. In this recipe, the zucchini flowers are stuffed with a creamy “cheese” made with fresh thyme, lemon, garlic and AIP unsweetened coconut yogurt.

They’re pan fried in avocado or olive oil and seriously addictive – the crunch is to die for. Don’t sleep on these, I promise!

Here’s what you need for these Tempura Zucchini Blossoms:

• cassava flour – this forms the base of the batter, I haven’t tested this recipe with any other flours and don’t recommend substituting it
• carbonated water – the carbonation is key to the texture of the batter!
• sea salt and garlic powder – to give the batter some flavor!
• olive oil or avocado oil – I like to mix them, personally
• AIP unsweetened coconut yogurt – ensure there are no added ingredients and that it’s full fat and thick. You don’t want it too runny as it won’t hold up well in the flowers when they’re fried. In Canada I like to use Simpla Foods brand. In the US, I’ve heard Culina and Cocojune are both good AIP options.
• fresh thyme, lemon zest and garlic – these are used to flavor the yogurt to form the “cheese” that is stuffed inside the blossoms

Here’s how you make these Stuffed Zucchini Blossoms:

1. Begin by washing and drying the blossoms and gently removing the stamen from between the petals of each flower.
2. Combine the coconut yogurt with thyme, lemon zest, fresh garlic and sea salt.
3. Gently open each of the flowers and fill with 1 tsp of the “cheese” mixture, folding the petals together to seal it in.
4. In a large bowl combine cassava flour, salt, garlic powder and carbonated water. You want the mixture to be pourable and easily coat the flowers, so add more a little more bubbly water to achieve this consistency if necessary.
5. Dredge the stuffed zucchini blossoms into the batter.
6. Place in a large skillet with olive oil on medium heat.
7. Cook for 4-5 minutes per side until golden brown.
8. Remove from oil and sprinkle with salt.
9. Serve warm.

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FAQs

Can I make these in the air fryer?

I’ve tried making these in my air fryer at 400F for 12-15 minutes. The batter doesn’t get a nice golden brown because of the absence of oil and so isn’t as crispy. If you want to avoid the oil any reason, it can work, but it’s not nearly as good as pan frying them!

How do I store these?

These are best eaten fresh and I wouldn’t recommend storing as the batter will get soggy. Don’t worry, you won’t have leftovers! If you want to prep in advance, I’d prepare the “cheese” filling and wash the flowers and assemble and fry shortly before serving.

Is there a substitute for the coconut yogurt?

I haven’t tried myself, but you can try another AIP cheese like this AIP mozzarella, but you won’t get the garlic, thyme and lemon flavor.

If you enjoyed this recipe you might also like:

Air Fryer Cauliflower Bites

AIP Chicken Nuggets

Green Banana Fries

If you try these Tempura Zucchini Blossoms, I would appreciate it if you would give them a rating and short review. Also, be sure to snap a picture of the finished product and share it with me on Instagram by tagging @healmedelicious.

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