homemade nettle soup
Nettles have valuable herbal benefits, both in food and remedies. They make a wonderful 'free food' and can be found in abundance all over Britain. Stinging nettles are very prickly and can cause skin irritation, which rather takes the fun out of the harvesting experience. Because of their prickly nature we recommend wearing marigolds, or gardening gloves (children can also wear their winter gloves if they don't have any gardening gloves) when picking nettles.
Ingredients:
1/2 a carrier bag full of nettles
50 g butter
1 large onion, peeled & finely chopped
1 litre stock
1 large potato, peeled & cubed
1 large carrot, peeled & chopped
sea salt & pepper to taste
2 TBL crème frais
How to make homemade nettle soup:
(1) Wearing gloves, remove nettle leaves from the stems and wash well.
(2) Melt butter in a saucepan over a low heat, and cook onions for 5 - 7 minutes, until softened.
(3) Add the stock, potato, carrot and nettles.
(4) Cook gently, until the potato is soft. (approximately 15 minutes)
(5) Remove from heat and puree mixture with a blender. (a handheld stick blender works well)
(6) Season to taste.
(7) Ladle soup into bowls, and garnish with a tsp of creme frais. Enjoy!
* This recipe is courtesy of 'The River Cottage Hedgerow Handbook' at www.rivercottage.net
Ingredients:
1/2 a carrier bag full of nettles
50 g butter
1 large onion, peeled & finely chopped
1 litre stock
1 large potato, peeled & cubed
1 large carrot, peeled & chopped
sea salt & pepper to taste
2 TBL crème frais
How to make homemade nettle soup:
(1) Wearing gloves, remove nettle leaves from the stems and wash well.
(2) Melt butter in a saucepan over a low heat, and cook onions for 5 - 7 minutes, until softened.
(3) Add the stock, potato, carrot and nettles.
(4) Cook gently, until the potato is soft. (approximately 15 minutes)
(5) Remove from heat and puree mixture with a blender. (a handheld stick blender works well)
(6) Season to taste.
(7) Ladle soup into bowls, and garnish with a tsp of creme frais. Enjoy!
* This recipe is courtesy of 'The River Cottage Hedgerow Handbook' at www.rivercottage.net