Just do everything

and the easiest tempura batter for lighter-than-air fried zucchini flowers

“Where we will we go next? And when?”

And suddenly, in two sentences, my husband created a shift, an opening, a deepening of breath, and with the exhale, a lightening of spirit.

The answer really doesn’t matter, does it? Because in those first journeys and adventures we take, everything will feel new and fresh. The slow lift and sudden optimistic surge of the plane taking flight. Crisp hotel bed linens, cool and white. The hush of an old church, and the rush of applause in a theatre. Getting lost in labyrinthine streets; confidently finding your way to a favourite café in a city visited years before.

What about all those random things you’ve been meaning to do or try? Overcoming your fear of heights and skydiving. Driving on the “wrong” side of the street. Joining a choir. Learning to paint. Taking up the violin again.

Where will you go? And what will you do?

Here’s a thought. Do everything. 

Your one wild and precious life

Years ago, as part of a company-wide innovation program rollout, we asked every employee to create a bucket list of ten things they’d like to do. The lists were posted outside each office door, and it was an immediately personal introduction to who was inside. Creating both conversation and connection, the lists outlasted the innovation program by a mile.

Funny to read that list now, with time and life and a reset between now and then. I still want to live with pigs and chickens (but not butcher them). Cooking my way around the world? Ten weeks in Sicily was a good start to that life goal. Although I don’t want to walk the red carpet anymore, I do want to spend time with Vera and continue to build memories in our 40-year friendship.

I know I don’t have to start a not-for-profit group to do good. Nor do I want to start an auction house; I’d rather continue to visit country auctions in the tiny towns that surround me. That master sommelier status is still tucked on a shelf; I’ll probably photograph food until the day I die; and I’ll always try to take one more breath before one more bite.

And yes, while the Galapagos still beckon, so do places closer to home and dearly missed.

The here and now

So, in spirit of doing everything, big and small, I’m not creating a new bucket list. Of course there will be things that I’ll plan to do some day…but some day is in far closer range, measured in weeks and months, not years.

Here’s a start:

• Hug more

• Act like a tourist, and see things with fresh eyes, no matter where I am

• Make weekend plans

• Sit at the bar for dinner and chat with my fellow diners

• Visit every museum I can

• Go to a movie theatre and eat the biggest bag of popcorn I can hold

• Wear (red) lipstick every day

• Revisit old friends I love and miss: Paris; London; this special place in the south of France; Narnia; Italy (all of it); New York; Montreal; Stratford (Ontario). For starters

• Travel the Ontario backroads searching for the perfect butter tart

• And most of all, have Christmas with my family

It’s an incomplete list, one that I expect will change weekly. A living, breathing, laugh-out-loud list of things that bring me joy, every one cherished and savoured.

In the meantime, if you hear of a farm with pigs and chickens where I might hang out, let me know, won’t you?

Stuffed Zucchini Flowers

plan for two or three per person

In our rush to be healthy, to cut out fats and go raw, it’s always a good strategy to minimize fried foods. But sometimes, when the season presents a short lived ingredient that just seems best fried, now more than ever, I am willing to indulge.

And so it is with zucchini flowers. Also called squash blossoms, these are the flowers produced by zucchini and other squash plants. Delicate fried zucchini flowers, stuffed with ricotta and aromatics, are a seasonal treat you shouldn’t miss (I found mine at the wonderful 19th Avenue Farmers’ Market). The key to lighter-than-air results is the tempura batter*. It’s gluten free and makes for a most delicious treat.

And if you haven’t had zucchini flowers, or you don’t eat anchovies (or olives, or liver, or blue cheese) - break open and try something new - at least once.

Ingredients

For the zucchini flower stuffing (enough for at least a dozen flowers)

12 fresh zucchini flower blossoms, pistils removed

¾ cup ricotta cheese

1/3 cup grated Parmigiana, plus extra for serving

Grated zest of ½ lemon

1 tablespoon lemon juice

3 basil leaves and 3 mint leaves, stacked together, rolled and thinly sliced

1 teaspoon cracked black pepper

Salt to taste

6 oil-packed anchovies, cut in half (optional)

For the tempura batter

½ cup cornstarch

½ cup rice flour

1 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder 

½ teaspoon kosher salt

1 cup cold sparkling water, more as needed

Sunflower or canola oil, for frying

1. In a medium bowl, combine the cheeses, lemon zest, lemon juice, basil, mint and pepper, and whisk lightly until smooth. Taste and check for salt.

2. Carefully open a zucchini blossom and stuff with a heaping teaspoon of filling. Depending on the size of the blossom, you may be able to put more. Just be sure that you can close the blossom without stuffing coming out. Add a half anchovy strip before you close the blossom.

3. Repeat and set the prepared blossoms on a plate.

4. In a medium deep saucepan, heat 3 inches oil to 350F

5. Make the tempura. Whisk together the cornstarch, flour, salt and baking powder. Start whisking in the sparkling water a little at a time, until smooth. You want the batter to have a thin consistency, similar to crepe batter. NB. This batter is best used immediately.

6. Working in batches, dip zucchini flowers into the batter, lift to have excess batter drip off, and gently place in hot oil. Fry until golden on all sides, about 5 minutes. As each batch is cooked, transfer to a paper towel lined plate to drain.

7. Place warm flowers on a serving platter, sprinkle with extra Parmigiana and serve.

*The tempura recipe can be used for all manner of vegetables. You may need to parboil firmer veggies first. Be sure to generously salt the water, and only cook the veggies “al dente”, - not fully cooked. Put them in an ice bath to stop cooking. Drain and dry with paper towels before dipping in the tempura batter.