Sorrel Pesto

Readers of this blog know that I love pesto. I try all different kinds of ingredients and so far they've all turned out to be extremely tasty. Yesterday, I spent some me time having one of my weekend cookathons during which I prepared three different kinds of wild flower pesto: sorrel pesto, ground elder and dandelion blossom pesto.

2 large handfuls of sorrel leaves

1 small handful of freshly grated parmesan

1 small handful of roasted cashew nuts, chopped

1 garlic clove, squashed

freshly ground black pepper
sea salt
extra virgin olive oil as needed

Wash the sorrel, spin and combine with all the ingredients in a food processor or the beaker of a handheld mixer and blitz. Transfer into sterilised screw-top jars, top up with olive oil to seal and screw on the lid.

Dandelion Blossom Pesto

Readers of this blog know that I love pesto. I try all different kinds of ingredients and so far they've all turned out to be extremely tasty. Yesterday, I spent some me time having one of my weekend cookathons during which I prepared three different kinds of wild flower pesto, dandelion pesto, ground elder and sorrel pesto.

500 g dandelion flowers

1 small handful of freshly grated parmesan

15 roasted Brazil nuts, chopped

1 garlic clove, squashed

freshly ground black pepper
sea salt
extra virgin olive oil as needed

Wash the dandelions, spin and fry in olive oil for about 5 min. Combine all the ingredients in a food processor or the beaker of a handheld mixer and blitz. The amount of olive oil depends on how runny you want the pesto to be. I prefer it to be quite thick rather than excessively oily. 

Transfer into sterilised screw-top jars, top up with olive oil to seal and screw on the lid. The ingredients above resulted in approx. 600 ml of pesto. This pesto is quite rich so you need less of it than of other herb-based pesto varieties.

As one jar was only half full, we at it that night with spaghetti and scattered some more freshly ground parmesan and a few ground ivy blossoms over the top. It was to die for!

Ground Elder Pesto

Readers of this blog know that I love pesto. I try all different kinds of ingredients and so far they've all turned out to be extremely tasty. Yesterday, I spent some me time having one of my weekend cookathons during which I prepared three different kinds of wild flower pesto: ground elder pesto, sorrel pesto and dandelion blossom pesto.

2 large handfuls of ground elder

1 small handful of freshly grated parmesan

1 small handful of whole almonds, chopped

1 garlic clove, squashed

freshly ground black pepper
sea salt
extra virgin olive oil as needed

Wash the ground elder, spin and combine with all the ingredients in a food processor or the beaker of a handheld mixer and blitz. Transfer into sterilised screw-top jars, top up with olive oil to seal and screw on the lid.

Asparagus and Nettle Soup

As you'll have noticed from my other posts this spring, I've discovered foraging and am loving it. So there's a second idea for a nettle soup.

250 g nettle tops (top four leaves)
300 g green asparugs
3 shalots
1 garlic clove
freshly ground black pepper
sea salt
freshly ground nutmeg
1 l vegetable soup
150 ml soured cream
1-2 heaped tsp. flour
olive oil

If you like, fry a handful of the nettles, dry them on paper towel, lightly salt them and scatter them over the soup when serving.

Wash and spin the nettles. Bend the asparagus spears so they break at the woody part, wash and set aside. Cut the remaining asparagus into 1 cm pieces. Finely chop the shalots and garlic.

Heat some oil in a saucepan, sauté the shalots and garlic for  2 minute, mix in the asparagus, then add the nettles. Mix together, season with pepper and salt. Add the vegetable stock and bring to the boil. Place the asparagus tips into the inset of a steamer, close the lid and simmer the soup for 5 minutes. Place the asparagus tips on a plate to prevent further cooking. Blitz the soup. Dissolve some flower in a little cold water, add to the soup and bring briefly to the boil to thicken. Season with nutmeg, add the cream and check the seasoning. Divide into portions and add the asparagus tops. 

Wildflower Bruschetta

Yesterday, we went for a walk and I was determined to do some foraging and prepare something wild for our Sunday dinner. And I was successful. We found nettles in abundance but also dandelion flowers, coltsfoot and daisies and were looking forward to a wild feast. Apart from the bruschetta I also made nettle soup and nettle risotto.

When we got home, we were really hungry and it was still nice in the garden so I quickly prepared some bruschetta with the wildflowers.

(serves 2)

4 slices of ciabatta
a large handful of dandelion flowers and buds
4 coltsfoot stems (that's all I found)
a few small vine tomatoes
a small handful of daisies
1 garlic clove
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
extra virgin olive oil

Wash each type of flowers separately and spin. Peel the garlic clove. Toast the ciabatta. In the meantime, heat the oil in a frying pan, fry the dandelion and coltsfoot for about 3 minutes and season with pepper und salt. Half the tomatoes and season with a little salt to bring out the flavor. Place in a bowl and scatter a few daisies on top.

Rub the toasted ciabatta slices with garlic, divide the fried flowers among them, scatter the remaining daisies over the top and enjoy – outdoors if possible.

Nettle Soup

The second dish I prepared with our foraged food was a nettle soup for Monday lunch.

(serves 4)

500 g stinging nettles
750 ml vegetable stock
1/2 onion
2 garlic cloves
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
nutmeg
extra virgin olive oil
150 ml soured cream

Using tongs, place the nettles into a collander and wash well. Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in a saucepan. Finely chop the onion and garlic, add to the saucepan and sautée for about 5 minutes. Add the nettles and mix with the onion and garlic. Sauté for 3-5 minutes before adding the stock. Bring to the boil, season with pepper, salt and nutmeg and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove from the heat and purée. Check the seasoning, then add the soured cream and serve.

For a slightly more substantial soup, add a handful of breadcrumbs along with the stock.

Nettle Risotto

The third dish I cooked with our foraged food was a nettle risotto based on a recipe from Giorgio Locatelli's fabulous cookbook „Made in Italy, Food & Stories“.

(serves 2)

2 handfuls of young stinging nettles
750 ml vegetable stock
150 ml dry white wine
200 g arborio rice
1/2 onion
2 garlic cloves
sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
nutmeg
extra virgin olive oil

Wash the nettles and blanch for 30 seconds in boiling salted water, then drain. Keep a few leaves back and purée the rest. Set aside. Finely chop the onion and garlic.

Heat about 1 tbsp of olive oil in a saucepan and sauté the onion, garlic and celery over a medium heat for about 5 minutes until soften but not brown. Add the rice and keep stirring until it becomes transparent. From here the risotto takes about 15-20 minutes. Now add the wine. Keep stirring until the wine has been absorbed. Then add the stock a ladle full at a time.

After 10 minutes add the puréed nettles and season with some nutmeg. When the rice is to your liking (al dente or just cooked) remove from the heat, season with pepper and (if required) salt. Stir in the parmesan and a glug of olive oil. Cover and rest for 2-3 minutes. Serve immediately scattered with parmesan and the left-over cooked nettle leaves.