Rare Blossoms

Did you ever think dinner would consist of flowers with goat cheese filling? I'd have to say, neither did we. We came across this recipe and thought that the bold flavors, colors and textures would be interesting to try, and of course, if all else fails the T-Bone Steak would come to the rescue. Our Captain's log is full of unique and beautiful recipes that are exciting to try, tonight's dinner was no exception and was truly a creative work of art.

It started Thursday with a trip to Eataly to acquire some of tonight's ingredients. My first stop was getting the zucchini flowers for the Fiora di Zucca Fritti - Fried Zucchini Flowers with Goat Cheese (page 44). Their colors were vibrant and beautiful. It was like picking fresh flowers from a garden, but these flowers were individually packaged in tiny crystal clear bags. Next, I was off to the butchers to purchase the steak for the Bistecca alla Fiorentina - T-Bone Fiorentina (page 400). The recipe calls for a 3 inch, 3 pound T-Bone Steak. As I approached the meat market I quickly glanced through the selection of meats to discover that although the T-Bone steaks that were displayed were of a generous cut, they still fell short of what the recipe called for. The butcher approached and asked if I needed help. He was taken aback by my request and said, "I'll have to cut that for you." He went to the back room and returned within a couple of minutes. He placed the large steak that I requested on the butcher table. Like Michelangelo with a brush, Frank Lloyd Wright with a pencil, and Tom Landry with his Cowboys the butcher masterfully went to work and cleaned, trimmed, and packaged his 3 pound work of art. I picked up the remainder of the ingredients and left Eataly confident and excited, looking forward to Saturday's meal.

We started with the filling for the Fiori di Zucca Fritti. Making the filling was fairly simple and consisted of combining the goat cheese, egg, scallions, nutmeg, salt and pepper. We knew that cooking these blossoms would only only take a few minutes so we began to prep the Bistecca alla Fiorentina for the grill. Although our George Foreman (grill) works magnificently for smaller tasks we knew that this heavy weight contender was too much for the former champ to take on. Luckily for us the gas grills at our complex are up and running for the summer. Mario, Mariesa, Angela and I gathered our steak, glasses of wine, baseball gloves and headed out. We let the grill and meat work in chorus and tossed the ball around with the kids while cooking the steak for 12 minutes on one side, flipping it over and letting it cook for an additional 9 minutes. We removed the steak from the grill and headed home to finish up.

Upon our return we placed the steak on the cutting board to rest while frying up the Fiori di Zucca Fritti in a heated saute pan with olive oil. This only took an few short minutes to complete and we were ready to eat. Cutting into the steak, as our Captain put it, was a "carnivores fantasy". The color and texture of the meat was sublime and each bite was delicious and seemed to get better with every mouthful. The Fiori di Zucca Fritti added a uniqueness and balance to the meal.

Everyone loved the goat cheese filled zucchini blossoms except Angela. Which was  different, since Mariesa is usually our picky eater. But surprisingly Mariesa loved it and we have come to discover through this endeavor that she is a cheese connoisseur. As the evening dwindled down and Mariesa wrapped up the last few dishes, Angela and I stepped outside onto to the candle lit patio and enjoyed a glass of wine. We talked about the meal and how rare it was to discover this recipe at a time when the blossoms were in season. We also discussed the welcome change of seasons, baptisms, birthdays on the horizon and realized how fortunate we are to have our own "rare blossoms".

Ciao,
Mario & Mario

The Three Tocayos

Fiori di Zucca Fritti 

Bistecca alla Fiorentina