Jane Grigson, the Italians and nettles

LUCKY DIP DAY

Today is one of those days of uninspiration if that's the word. So I did my blind pick and came up with Jane Grigson's Vegetable Book, which opened to the page - well couple of pages (that's all there are) on nettles.

My heart sank a little because I did mention nettles before in my article on weeds, but it was only a passing reference, so I decided to look at it a bit more.

But first of all - Jane Grigson. Of the same generation as Elizabeth David and a doyenne of English cookbooks of the time. I have lots of them and Jane Grigson's Vegetable Book along with Good Things are my favourites. There's a Fruit Book too. They are both classics of the genre. It took me years to find a photograph of the lady but here she is looking very glamorous, which I believe she really wasn't. She was a down-to-earth Yorkshire lady, more likely to be like the housewife in the drawing that features at the front of one of her books, as shown below. Her daughter is Sophie Grigson - also a cook of some renown in England.

But back to nettles. At the beginning of her article she states:

"Young nettles in the spring, when they shoot with fierce bright leaves, are good to eat. Not as good as spinach, whatever some people may claim, but not to be despised especially at a season of the year when greenery is scarce. There was a folk belief that nettles taken in April and May purified the blood. After a winter of stodgy storeable foods, one would have welcomed the lighter flavour, and felt better for the vitamins, less stuffy, and so in a sense purified."

Nettles have been used for food and medicine since forever - well they're basically a weed that grows anywhere. No need to describe it to people. Rich in Vitamin A and C and also iron and magnesium. Apparently though, you should only eat it when young - once the flowers appear it contains calcium carbonate that can damage your kidneys. And, of course, wear gloves when you pick it. Cooking it gets rid of the sting. There is no proof that rubbing your sting with a dock leaf will help.

So what can you do with them? The simplest thing to do, according to the River Cottage people is to make tea. Just pour boiling water over a half a dozen or so leaves, steep them for 5-10 minutes, scoop them out and drink. However they then go on to say:

"If you like the water left over from boiling Brussels sprouts, you'll love it."

Perhaps not then.

I'm going to be a proper foodie today though and provide a few recipes that you could try. Jane Grigson provides a couple of recipes for nettle soup - it's most common usage, which have interesting things like oats in them, but you could also make a soup just like you would make any green soup. The Italians, of course, add tomatoes, bacon and garlic. I also found recipes for risotto, gnocchi and ravioli. I had some nettle ravioli in Italy whilst there on holiday, so obviously the Italians still use them. They were very delicious.

NETTLE SOUP

IRISH NETTLE POTTAGE OR SOUP

1/2 litre water, or milk and water, or meat or vegetable stock

30g butter

30g rolled oats

1/4 litre chopped young nettles

pepper, salt

1 good teaspoon chopped parsley

Bring the liquid and butter to boiling point, then stir in the oats. When the pan returns to the boil, add the nettles and the seasoning. Cover and simmer for 30-45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Taste and correct the seasoning, add the parsley and leave for another 2 minutes. Then serve.

IRISH NETTLE BROTH

When the broth was half done, a separate pot of potatoes would be prepared to be ready at the same time. The meat was taken out and cut up, with a piece or two put into each bowl along with some of the broth and potatoes. Everyone mashed up his bowlful to his own liking and ate it with a spoon.

1 kg shin or any boiling beef or lamb tied in a piece

2 1/4 litres water

1 teacup pearl barley

bunch of spring onions

1/4 litre chopped young nettles

pepper, salt, flour

Simmer the first three ingredients for two hours. Add the greenery and give it another hour. Finally add seasoning - this should not be done until the beef is tender, as salt can toughen it. If you like an even thicker soup, mix some of the broth into a tablespoon of flour, then stir this mixture when smooth into the soup, and leave to simmer for a further 15 minutes.

NETTLE SOUP FROM THE SILVER SPOON (ITALIAN)

600g fresh nettles, 1.5 litres meat stock, 3 tablespoons olive oil, 50g pancetta, diced, 1 garlic clove, chopped, 2 ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped, 150g long-grain rice, salt

Wearing a pair of gloves, remove all the nettle leaves and strings that cling to the stems. Wash and drain well and chop coarsely. Bring the stock to the boil. heat the oil in another pan, add the pancetta and garlic and cook for 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes and cook for a further 10 minutes, then season with salt and stir in the nettles. Cook for a few minutes more, then pour in the stock, bring back to the boil and add the rice. Cook for 15-20 minutes until the rice is tender. Ladle into a soup tureen and serve immediately.

ITALIAN THINGS

NETTLE RAVIOLI

Yes this is a picture of a slightly different recipe, but never mind.

For the Pasta - 100g stinging nettle leaves, 500g Italian '00' pasta flour, 4 large eggs, 1/2 tsp salt

For the filling - 50g stinging nettle leave, 25g pignuts, plus a little oil (or hazelnuts or pine kernels), 25g wild garlic leaves (or an ordinary garlic clove), 1 egg, sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Wash the all the nettles, simmer in a little water for 10 minutes, then drain thoroughly. For the pasta, take two-thirds of the nettles and squeeze out as much water as you can, then chop them very, very finely, almost to a powder.

Heap the flour into a mound on a clean surface, make a well in the middle and add the eggs and salt. Start to mix to a dough, then add the nettles and continue kneading unit it is an even green colour. The dough should be quite firm; if it gets too sticky, sprinkle on a little flour; if too dry, knead in a little water. Wrap in cling film and refrigerate for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the filling. Slice the pignuts and briefly sauté in a little oil (or just chop other nuts). Chop the remaining (cooked) nettles and the wild garlic (just crush ordinary garlic). In a bowl, mix the nettles, garlic, nuts and egg together and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Roll out the pasta into thin sheets, using a pasta machine; keep the sheets covered with a very slightly damp tea towel as you work, to prevent them drying out.

One sheet at a time, cut out rounds, using a 6cm pastry cutter. Spoon a little of the filling on the centre of half of the pasta discs and place another disc on top of each. Press firmly with a ravioli press (if you have one) or just press the edges together firmly and crimp with the handle of a knife. Keep covered while making the rest.

Bring a large pan of salted water to a rolling boil. Add the ravioli and cook at a fast boil until al dente (tender but firm to the bite), about 3-4 minutes. Drain thoroughly and serve on warmed plates, topped with melted butter or grated Parmesan, or best of all with wild garlic pesto.

POTATO AND NETTLE GNOCCHI

1kg potatoes, 200g stinging nettles, finely chopped, 200g plain flour, 1 egg, lightly beaten, 80g butter, 1 garlic clove, 4 fresh sage leaves, 50g Parmesan cheese, freshly grated, salt

Steam or boil the potatoes for 25 minutes until tender, then mash with a potato masher while still hot. Stir in the nettles, followed by the flour. Beat in the egg, season with salt and knead. Divide the dough into several pieces and shape each into a roll about 1.5cm in diameter. Cut into 2cm lengths and press them gently against the underside of a grater. Bring a large pan of lightly salted water to the boil, add the gnocchi a few at a time and remove with a slotted spoon as they rise to the surface. meanwhile, melt the butter in a small frying pan, add the garlic and sage leaves and cook for a few minutes until the garlic is lightly browned. Remove and discard the garlic. Place the gnocchi on a warm serving dish, pour the sage butter over them, sprinkle with the Parmesan and mix gently.

And look - a quote from Terry Pratchett. I told you he had a quote about everything!

“Sometimes it’s like watching a wasp land on a stinging nettle: someone’s going to get stung and you don’t care.” Guards, Guards