
In the event that you are tired of hearing us wax obsessed about squash blossoms, too bad! We have another squash blossom extravagance to share. While we usually stuff, batter and fry the delicate flowers, we wanted to try a lighter recipe that was less labor intensive.
Squash blossoms provide the perfect vehicle for holding fillings similar to the pasta tubes used to make cannelloni or manicotti. So following that line of thinking, we decided to try a ricotta-based filling in the blossoms that could be baked by the dozen, rather than fried in batches of three or four.

- 12 squash blossoms
- 1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
- ¼ cup grated Parmesan
- 1 egg yolk
- ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley
- 2 tablespoons chives
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon white pepper, freshly ground
- ½ cup crabmeat (optional)
- 2 eggs, beaten
- ¾ cup breadcrumbs

In a large mixing bowl, beat together ricotta, egg yolk, herbs, salt and pepper. Once combined, gently fold in the crab meat without breaking it up. Using a pastry bag fitted with a large pastry tip, pipe the filling into each blossom about 2/3 full.
Put the remaining 2 eggs in a bowl and whisk until frothy, and place the breadcrumbs in a separate bowl. Loosely twist the petals together to close before dipping each stuffed squash blossom in the egg, and then in the breadcrumbs before transferring to a parchment-lined baking sheet.
