This was an easy, delicious recipe to cook and it looked great! We had half of this for lunch, took some to work the next day and ate what was left over with a glass of wine the next night – it was beautiful every time.
Serves 4
1 egg
¼ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
½ tablespoon freshly chopped flat-leaf parsley
200ml olive oil
1 medium zucchini, cut into 3mm slices (I cut mine length ways, but on reflection I think coins were intended for Grossi’s recipe)
Flour
½ tablespoon freshly chopped mint
1 small clove garlic, chopped
Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
150g buffalo-milk mozzarella, finely sliced
Break the egg into a bowl, then add the Parmigiano-Reggiano and parsley and beat well. Heat three quarters of the oil in a medium frying pan until hot. Dust the zucchini slices in flour, shake off the excess and dip into the egg mixture (be careful not to let too much stick, I nearly ran out of batter). Fry the zucchini in batches over a high heat for about a minute on each side until golden brown. Drain on kitchen paper. Transfer the zucchini to a shallow dish and scatter over the mint and garlic. Drizzle with the remaining oil and season with salt and pepper. Let stand for 10 minutes.
Put a layer of zucchini into a serving dish, then cover with a layer of mozzarella slices. Repeat with the remaining zucchini and cheese, finishing with a layer of zucchini. Refrigerate for several hours before serving.
"My Italian Heart" is a beautiful cookbook, written in the gentle but passionate tone you could only expect from an Italian. Grossi’s restaurant, Grossi Florentino, is one of Melbourne’s best - a fine dining institution. The recipes in his book range from simple stand-bys to unctuous feasts. The cookbook stays true to its “Italian kitchen” title, with meals that you can actually replicate – and they taste beautiful too.