COOKING WEEDS - Vivien Weise
This gem of a book gives some delicious recipes using local abundant ‘weeds’.. These are all vegetarian recipes, but can be adapted to whatever flavour diet you choose.
A few examples...
COMFREY HAMBURGERS
Serves 3 or 4 as a main course
6-8 thick square slices of wholemeal bread or pitta bread.
100g green spelt grains
1 large cup vegetable stock
4 handfuls of comfrey leaves (with flowers, if you like)
1 handful mugwort
4 tiny leaves ground ivy
1 onion
butter for frying
1 teaspoon thyme, dried
1 teaspoon oregano, dried,
1 teaspoon mixed herbs
1 teaspoon tomato puree
3 cloves garlic crushed,
1 egg
1 teaspoon French mustard
salt, pepper
For the bread... butter, mustard, tomato ketchup, mayonnaise, slices of tomato and onion
Toast the bread. Cut into each slice from one side so that a pocket suitable for stuffing is created. This is easier with pitta bread.
Grind the green spelt coarsely and dry-fry it until it is a very pale brown. Add the vegetable stock and bring to the boil. Then turn down to a low heat and leave to simmer for 15 mins.
Put some of the Comfrey leaves aside and chop the others finely, as well as the Mugwort and the Ground Ivy.
Cut the onion into small cubes. Fry the Onion in butter, then add the chopped weeds and dried herbs. Stir in the tomato puree and add some water to avoid burning (be careful that you do not use too much water, otherwise the mixture cannot be shaped into burgers). Simmer for 10 minutes. Shortly before the weeds are done, add the crushed garlic.
Mix the weeds well with the green spelt and the egg. Taste and season with mustard, salt and pepper. Add some flour if there is too much fluid in the mixture. Form into round flat burgers and fry them in vegetable oil on both sides until they are golden brown.
Now take the Comfrey leaves put aside beforehand, and fry them separately, 2 for each burger. Put one on either side of each burger. Season the bread to taste, like a conventional hamburger, with butter, mustard, tomato ketchup, mayonnaise, etc.. and fill it with the burger and Comfrey leaves, adding tomato and onion slices if you like.
DAISY DANDELION SALAD
Serves 4 as a salad
4 handfuls daisies (leaves and flowers)
2 handfuls dandelion (leaves stalks flowers)
2 spring onions,
3 tablespoons lemon juice
nutmeg, salt, pepper
4-5 tablespoons sunflower oil
30g sunflower seeds
Wash the daisies and chop the washed dandelions finely.
Chop the onions very finely and stir them into the lemon juice. Season with nutmeg, pepper and salt. Finally, whisk the oil into the dressing.
Gently roast the sunflower seeds in a small amount of sunflower oil. Blend them into the salad just before serving.
YARROW POLENTA WITH ALMOND CRUST
Serves 4 as a main course
800ml vegetable stock
200g polenta
2 large onions
4 handfuls yarrow
2 cloves garlic
butter
pepper
nutmeg
200g flaked almonds
butter
Bring the vegetable stock to the boil and add the polenta.
Let simmer on a low heat for 10-15 minutes, stirring all the time.
Chop the onions and the yarrow finely and crush the garlic. Fry it all together in butter and season with pepper and nutmeg. Saute the almonds in some butter until golden, but take care not to burn them. Fill a greased ovenproof dish with alternate layers of polenta and vegetables. Sprinkle the almonds on top. Sprinkle with almonds on top. Bake in the oven at 200 degrees celsius (400F gas mark 6) for 20 to 25 minutes.
