U-Turn for Mozza

While speeding back from Beverly Hills this afternoon, I decided to take my usual out-of-the-way detour past Highland and Melrose to spy upon the progress of Mario Batali's new restaurant location. Brown paper and smudgey windows still reside at the Osteria-to-be on the main corner, but much to my surprise the Pizzeria next door, Mozza, looks wide open and bustling with life!

I crank a serious U-turn and pull myself up to the pizza bar as quickly as possible.

I hit the tail-end of the lunch rush, so my timing was perfect. A review of the menu: squash blossom, burrata and tomato pizza -- Done!

As an added bonus, co-owner Nancy Silverton, the famed LA chef and mozzarella guru is manning the pizza bar. Nancy is known as THE purveyor of the freshest cheeses in town -- her cameos at Jar's "Mozzarella Night" and "Grilled Cheese" Thursdays at Campanile have both become LA dining institutions. Now Nancy has partnered with Mario Batali in what promises to be the primo pizza spot in LA.

Perched on my barstool, I watch Nancy and her two pizza chefs go to town. As each pie emerges from the raging wood-burning oven, Nancy inspects the pizza, shouts out pointers to her staff and then finishes it off with a turn of olive oil and a dusting of salt, pepper and fresh herbs. The 10-inch pies are super thin in the center with gorgeously large aerated puffs around the perimeter. Sometimes when the puffs come out a bit charred, Nancy takes kitchen shears to each pie and trims off the overly blackened spots. This pizza is glorious in these "imperfections."

Some of the main ingredients are also added by Nancy at this finishing stage. Dollops of burrata are scooped atop the pie after cooking (the waiter told me the burrata gets too chewy if put in the oven to melt). Nancy also carefully folds paper-thin prosciutto di parma slices and sprinkles fresh rucola atop a just-out-of-the-oven pie with molten mozzarella.

I watch the pizza team create my order my scratch. From what I could see, the chefs' technique consists first of a dusting of semolina flour on the individual wooden pizza peel board. The doughy disc is gently plied with the fingertips, and then placed on top of both fists and stretched in circles by the knuckles until it reaches desired size & thinness. It is returned to the wooden peel and given a paintbrushing of olive oil.

One small ladel of sauce is poured onto the center of the pie, then using the bottom of the ladel the chef traces a spiraling nautilus pattern out to the perimeter to distribute the sauce. He adds my squash blossoms and pops it into the oven. Just over ten minutes later my crispy, bubbling pie is ready for Nancy. She tops it off with the burrata, herbs and seasonings -- magnificent!

I'm big on squash blossoms these days, so I couldn't be any happier with these creative toppings. And the crust: light and thin with an underlying crisp and just enough toothiness in the chew. And the burrata ... ooooh ... need I say more?

The other 13 varieties of pizzas feature finely selected fresh local ingredients and nods to classic italian combinations. And the hallmark of course, the cheeses include mozzarella, burrata, fontina, taleggio, parmigiano, pecorino, cacio di Roma, gorgonzola, and caciocavallo. But that's as much as I'll tell you about the menu -- I wouldn't want to ruin the surprise of such fantastic offerings in LA.

Ravioli Role Reversal

It's rare that a ravioli takes me by such surprise. It's even more rare when it takes place at a British gastropub. This was the case of the Tomato Basil Ravioli served at the Village Pub in Barnsely -- a picturesque village in the Cotswolds.

The homemade ravioli are unassuming in appearance: delicate pouches glisten with a thin coating of parmesean cream sauce, monochrome and rather "vanilla" in presentation. But upon first bite, the pouch explodes with an intense tomato basil flavor. It's the inverse of what you'd expect, with a small but potent amount of "sauce" in the filling. I found it outstanding.

Stuffed Zucchini Blossoms

These bright yellow-orange flowers signal summer's bounty. Whether fried on their own, or in a light batter or with a savory stuffing, they turn out a visually stunning and delicious appetizer. And besides, what can be more exotic than feasting on flowers?

There is a fair amount of labor that goes into prepping these gems for consumption, but it's well worth the effort. A staple at any self-respecting farmer's market, make sure you select zucchini blossoms that haven't been bruised or over handled. You'll need to perform the tricky procedure of reaching into each flower and nicking out the stamen. I've tried extracting the stamen with tweezers, but a small pairing knife works best. Don't worry if you slightly tear the side of the blossom a bit, it will hold up when stuffed and fried.

This recipe combines two sources: I borrowed the batter from Italy's much revered Silver Spoon cookbook (Fiori di Zucchine Ripieni e Fritti), while the goat cheese stuffing comes from Mario Batali's Molto Italiano (Fiori di Zucca Fritti). Traditionally, the flowers are stuffed with mozzarella, but as Mario says, "you can use any soft, creamy, delicate cheese."

+ Recipe
Fried Stuffed Zucchini Blossoms

12 Zucchini Flowers, trimmed
The Batter:
Scant 1 cup all-purpose flour
1 egg, separated
5 Tablespoons dry white wine
2 Tablespoons olive oil
2/3 - 3/4 c. warm water
salt
The Stuffing:
1 c. soft goat cheese (or fresh goat cheese curd if you can find it)
1 large egg
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
salt and freshly ground black pepper

First, prepare the batter by combining the flower, pinch of salt and egg yolk, wine oil and add 2/3 - 3/4 c. warm water to make a runny mixture. Let stand for 30 minutes. Wish the egg white in a grease-free bowl and fold into the batter.

Next, clean and trim the blossoms by removing the stamen. Trim the stem slightly, but not completely -- you'll want to keep a bit of stem. Rinse the flowers under gentle running water to get rid of any pollen, goo or bugs, and drain them on paper towels.

In a small bowl, stir together goat cheese, egg, scallions, nutmeg and sat and pepper to taste. Using a small spoon, stuff each blossom with 1-1/2 Tablespoons of the filling.

In a 10-12 inch skillet, heat 3-4 Tablespoons vegetable oil for frying. Dip each stuffed blossom into the batter then fry in the hot oil until golden brown -- turning as needed.

When done, place blossoms on paper towels to drain. Serve immediately.