Squash Blossom Chile Relleno

It’s that time of the year when those beautiful squash blossoms selectively appear at the farmer’s market and specialty grocery stores. I look forward to it because they have such a short life and add something very special to traditional dishes.

Last year, I stuffed them with cheese and fried them to crispy perfection.  The year before that, I turned them into a silky creamy soup to enjoy during the May Gray and June Gloom weather of Los Angeles.  Of course, you can always add them to your breakfast frittata or stuff them in a quick quesadilla, but the more I handle these precious little blooms, the more I want to do with them.

This year, I decided to pan fry them with a generous portion of onion and garlic and stuff them in a roasted Poblano chile and serve it with the traditional chile relleno tomato sauce.  I decided not to dredge the chile in the whipped egg mixture and fry it because I wanted to keep it as healthy as possible.  You are more than welcome to do that because I know the taste will be incredible.

Squash blossoms tend to shrink so one must purchase a substantial amount if you’re planning to prepare family size dishes.  Don’t be shy and purchase as much as you can because you will be using every single one of those pretty little flowers.

Serve this up for a special weekend lunch this spring.  Pair it up with white rice or potatoes for a complete meal.

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