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Crab-Stuffed Zucchini Flowers with Mustard Butter Sauce

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Crab-Stuffed Zucchini Flowers with Mustard Butter SauceAngie Mosier

These large yellow blossoms are the flowers that form on the fruit of the zucchini plant. They have a beautiful color, a delicate texture and a slight peppery taste. Filled with a creamy mixture of sweet crabmeat, they are steamed and then dressed with a creamy mustard butter sauce.

Recipe information

  • Yield

    Serves 4

Ingredients

Zucchini flowers:

8

ounces Peekytoe crabmeat

2

tablespoons crème fraîche

1

lemon, zested and juiced

1

tablespoon thinly sliced chives

  • fine sea salt and freshly ground white pepper

  • piment d'Espelette

12

large zucchini flowers, stamens removed

Mustard butter sauce:

1

tablespoon water

6

tablespoons unsalted butter

1

/2 tablespoon Dijon mustard

1

/2 tablespoon whole grain mustard

  • fine sea salt and freshly ground white pepper

1

tablespoon thinly sliced chives

Need to make a substitution?

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Combine the crabmeat, crème fraîche, lemon juice and zest, and chives in a mixing bowl. Season to taste with salt, white pepper and piment d'Espelette. Using a small spoon or a piping bag, gently stuff each zucchini flower three-quarters full with the crab mixture.

    Step 2

    Bring the water to a boil in a heavy small saucepan over medium heat and whisk in the butter 1 tablespoon at a time until the all of the butter is emulsified. Whisk in both mustards and season to taste with salt and pepper. Set the butter sauce aside and keep warm.

    Step 3

    Place a large pot filled with 2 inches of water over high heat and bring to a boil. Place the stuffed zucchini flowers in a steamer insert, then set the steamer in the pot. Cover and steam until the crab filling is hot, about 3 minutes.

    Step 4

    Place 3 zucchini flowers on each of 4 plates. Stir the chives into the mustard butter sauce, spoon the sauce over and around the stuffed flowers and serve immediately.

Reprinted with permission from Avec Ripert: A Culinary Journey with Eric Ripert by Eric Ripert with Angie Mosier and Soa Davies, (C) 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.