One of the salad leaves we’re growing this year is blood veined sorrel. It’s slightly tougher than the other leaves such as oriental mustard and mizuna but has a lovely citrus taste…to the point where if you chew it long enough it actually tastes quite like lemon! So, if you like tangy salad leaves, then I reckon this one’s for you. They make a nice colour addition to salads too (like chive flowers).
Don’t dig up all your nettles until you’ve picked the top few leaves for nettle soup! I was busy weeding around the blackcurrants when I came across a clump of fresh young nettles. I downed tools, rushed inside and came out a few minutes later wearing my Marigolds (a must for nettle picking) and carrying a plastic bag. Five minutes later I’d collected enough small leaves for nettle soup. I’m not sure what the neighbours thought! It was too nice a day to go inside so I just put them in the fridge, and then had the satisfaction of digging the nettles up. I love the way you pull one and a whole row comes up as they are all attached to one another by long yellow roots. I have to admit, I didn’t get round to making the soup until a couple of days later but I now have a lovely pan full of fresh green nettle soup. I used Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall’s recipe from the River Cottage Cookbook. It’s very simple. This is what you will need:
It’s worth giving the nettles a thorough wash, as there are often insects on them (this is where I got stung – didn’t think I’d need my Marigolds after they’d been in the fridge for two days!). Then sweat the onion, carrot, celery and garlic in some butter until soft. Add the potato, stock and nettles and simmer for about 10 minutes. Season and add a touch of nutmeg. Purée the whole lot and stir in the cream or crème fraîche. Top each bowl with some extra crème fraîche and a sprinkling of chives and parsley. Delicious for lunch, and an extra harvest from the garden when there isn’t much else.
Also, did you know that nettles can attract aphids and cabbage white butterflies away from your veg? It might just be worth having a little patch of them somewhere (well contained of course as they spread terribly). Maybe nettles aren’t so bad after all!
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