Ingredients
- 4 sprigs of fresh mint
- 150 g fresh or frozen peas
- 100 g ricotta cheese
- 50 g mature Cheddar cheese
- 1 lemon
- 8 baby courgettes, with flowers
- 400 g ripe cherry tomatoes
- 4 spring onions
- 8 black olives (stone in)
- 1 fresh red chilli
- 2 cloves of garlic
- olive oil
- red wine vinegar
- 300 g basmati rice
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200°C/400°F/gas 6. Pick the mint leaves into a food processor, then add the peas, ricotta and Cheddar. Finely grate in the lemon zest and squeeze in the juice, then add a pinch of black pepper and blitz until smooth. Taste and adjust the seasoning, if needed. Carefully fill each courgette flower with the mixture, then press and pat the petals back together to seal.
- Halve the tomatoes, trim and slice the spring onions and destone and tear the olives. Deseed and roughly chop the chilli, then peel and roughly chop the garlic. Put everything into a 25cm x 35cm roasting tray. Drizzle with 2 tablespoons each of oil and vinegar, then season with pepper and scrunch together well. Stir in the rice and 700ml of boiling water, then place over the hob and bring to the boil, stirring occasionally. Lightly push the courgettes into the rice, and bake at the bottom of the oven for 20 minutes, or until beautifully golden.
- Delicious with a summery salad and a glass of chilled dry white wine.
Tips
If you can’t get courgette flowers, halve regular courgettes, then use a teaspoon to scrape out the seedy core and stuff them.
Source: Jamie Oliver
