Staff Writer| Austin American-Statesman
In Central Texas, our late summer months are often the time of year when gardeners put their beds to sleep by planting a cover crop. However, if you continued to grow through August, one of the heat-loving plants you might still be cultivating is squash.
To enjoy your squash plants to the fullest before you start your fall garden in late September or October, we recommend not only eating the fruit but also the gorgeous golden flowers the plant produces — also known as squash blossoms.
Squash bears both male and female flowers that serve important roles. The male flowers produce pollen while the female flowers produce fruit. You can identify the female flowers by looking for a small bulge located below the blossom, which is the ovary that turns into the edible fruit. The male flower appears earlier than the female flower, is hairier, and is directly connected to the stem.
Our pollinator friends play an important role in squash fruit production. Bees and other insects visit both flowers often and carry pollen from the male flowers to the female flowers. While the female flower continues to produce the fruit, male flowers wilt and drop to the ground at the end of their life cycle.
As you wait for the plant to produce fruit, you can pick and eat the beautiful squash flowers. Yes, you can eat the flowers! Go ahead and pick the first ones that appear. Harvesting the first flowers won’t necessarily hurt the plant’s production as the early flowers are male and serve only to produce pollen. Picking the female flower (which some say is the tastiest) will reduce the plant’s fruit production.
You can leave a few male flowers on the plant for pollination purposes. Rest assured that squash plants will produce many flowers, so it’s not a problem to pick them and wait for more to form.
To verify that you are picking the male flower, feel the flower’s base; if it is thin and flat with no tiny fruit, use pruning shears or a sharp knife to snip the flower from the stem.
Harvest squash flowers in the morning and use them the same day of harvest, as they are delicate and do not store for long. If you do store them, wash the flowers and place them in a bowl of ice water and refrigerate. When you are ready to use them, remove the inner parts of the flower and dry off the petals.
Squash blossoms are popular in Mexican, Italian and Turkish cuisine. Use them whole or chopped, fresh or cooked — the options are endless. The blossoms can be stuffed with herbs, rice or cheese; battered and fried; or simply sautéed and added to dishes. They are slightly sweet and might have a hint of squash flavor (depending on the type of squash from which they come).
In Mexico, flores de calabaza are a very popular ingredient. A simple recipe that uses the flores are quesadillas: a delicious, easy meal to make that can be enjoyed by kids and adults alike.
To learn more about Central Texas gardening, check out Sustainable Food Center’s fun, hands-on “Introduction to Food Gardening Class Series” offered every fall and spring at SFC’s Teaching Garden.
Squash Blossom Quesadillas
1 tsp. olive oil
4 green onions, chopped
Handful of medium to large squash blossoms
1 cup Oaxacan, Monterrey Jack or Muenster cheese, shredded
4 tortillas (corn or whole wheat)
Fresh salsa
Remove stamen and any stem from blossoms. Heat oil over medium heat in a sauté pan. Add green onions and sauté for two minutes. Add blossoms and cover. Turn off heat. Cook for one minute.
While cooking the onion and blossoms, heat tortillas in another sauté pan making sure to heat both sides so that the tortillas are warm and pliable.
Assemble quesadillas by placing ¼ each of the onion, squash blossoms and cheese on each tortilla. Fold tortilla over on itself and serve with fresh salsa on top.
Makes four quesadillas.
¡Buen provecho!
— SFC’s The Happy Kitchen/La Cocina Alegre
