Stinging Nettle Soup

Courtney Denning posted this link, http://www.flickr.com/photos/crooked_ed/138250251/in/set-72057594074700421/ , for a tasty Nettle Soup. A lot of people are aware of how nutritious and tasty they can be. Stinging nettle has been used for hundreds of years to treat rheumatism (disorders of the muscles and joints), eczema, arthritis, gout, and anemia.

Ingredients:

• 40g (about 1/2 lb.) young nettle heads (stalks removed)
• 1 large leek
• 2 cloves of garlic
• 1 stick of celery
• 2 potatoes
• 750ml ( about 1&1/2 pints) of organic vegetable stock
• 1 Tbl. Olive oil
• sea salt and cracked black pepper (to taste)
• Serve with sour cream and buttered croutons

Directions:

1. In a large pot, put in olive oil over medium-high heat. Add onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onions are soft, about 3 minutes.
2. Add potatoes and stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to maintain a low, steady simmer and cook 15 minutes.
3. Add nettles and cook until very tender, about 10 minutes. Adjust seasoning.
   
4. Puree soup with an immersion blender or in a blender or food processer in batches. For a silken, less fibrous texture, run mixture through a food mill or sieve.
5. Stir in cream, if using. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper, if you like.
6. Serve hot, garnished with sour cream or yogurt, and croutons.

Servings: 4-6

Ramps and Pasta

This time of year we're hearing a lot about West Virginia ramp festivals, and people are asking "What are ramps?" and "How do you use them?" Well, you can use ramps in any recipe that calls for garlic or scallions. The whole plant is edible. I like them in potato salad, with fried potatoes, and this way, with pasta.








Ingredients

• 1/2 lb ramps
• 1 teaspoon finely grated fresh lemon zest or lemon juice
• Crushed red pepper (optional)
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 lb pasta of choice (I like farfella [bowtie] pasta)
• 4 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan
  

Directions

1. Trim roots from ramps and slip off outer skin on bulbs, if loose. Blanch ramps in a 6-quart pot of boiling salted water, 5 to 10 seconds, lift out of boiling water and transfer to cutting board. Coarsely chop ramps and put in a blender with zest and oil.
2. Add pasta to boiling water and cook a few minutes, then ladle out 1/2 cup pasta water and add to blender. Purée ramps until smooth and season with salt. Continue to cook pasta until al dente, then ladle out about 1 cup additional pasta water before draining spaghetti in a colander. Return pasta to pot with ramp purée and toss with parmesan over moderate heat for several minutes, thinning sauce with a little pasta water as needed to coat pasta.
3. Transfer to serving plate.

Weekend Workshop: More on Yogurt Making

Last night, I taught a yogurt making workshop in collaboration with Community Food Initiatives at AceNet as part of OU's Earth Month. The original posting for instructions on making yogurt at home can be found here.

A copy of the PDF handout from last nights workshop can be found here. It includes illustrated instructions on making yogurt, as well as a list of the health benefits, and some tips and recipes for making flavored yogurts, fruit-on-the-bottom yogurts and making Greek yogurt.

We had a great turnout for the workshop. Folks asked some great questions, and everyone was able to take home a cup of yogurt to start their own batch.

For those who asked about adding powdered milk to the recipe to thicken the yogurt, add 1/3 cup to your 1 qt. milk recipe.

A few members of the group asked about making non-dairy yogurts, such as soy and coconut milk yogurts. I have not had experience with this, but I promised to look into it. Below are a few links to some helpful tutorials. I have not tested these recipes, but they sound promising. I would love to hear from folks, if anyone tries these recipes out-- tell us about your experiences!

• Making Soy Yogurt
• Making Soy Yogurt in a slow cooker
  
• Making Coconut Milk Yogurt
• Coconut Milk Yogurt using plain yogurt as a starter (this recipe is not dairy-free)