Nettle Foraging & My Favorite Green Smoothie

Prickles!

Last weekend I spent a few good hours tromping around Discovery Park with some folks from The Seattle Wild Foods Meetup Group and my bff Amy. The two of us eventually split off on our own and found a few really good spots for nettle picking. Honestly- this time of year it's nearly impossible not to find good spots all over the place. They're coming up like the wild little weeds that they are.

Blanched or dried- the vicious little things quickly turn into a culinary dream. Their flavor is earthy, fresh, and a little zippy. They make an easy replacement for cooked spinach in recipes, brew into an earthy tea, and blend into a gorgeous pesto or ravioli filling. I blanch mine for 2-3 minutes, run them through the food processor, and then freeze into ice cube tray portions. From there I can thaw and add them to just about anything. Most recently I've been adding them to my smoothies.

Cranberry & Nettle Smoothie

This has been my lifeblood lately. In an effort to cut down on gluten- I started making myself smoothies for breakfast most mornings. It took me a few tries to get a combination down that really did it for me- but I am over the moon about this one. The great part about smoothies is that everything is more or less interchangeable. If you don't have access to nettles- no problem. There are an infinite  number of things that you can use instead. I've included some good alternatives in notes marked with red astrix below.

This smoothie is pleasantly tart, and lends its creaminess to raw cashews soaked in water. Ideally it's best to soak cashews overnight- but an hour will suffice, and in a pinch I've just thrown the cashews and water in without soaking at all. Still great, just not as smooth. If you're freaked out by the idea of adding greens to a smoothie- try it first with a small amount of spinach. You'll be pleasantly surprised- you truly can't taste it at all. Feel free to adjust the amount of honey that you use based on your tolerance for tartness.

Cranberry & Nettle Smoothie:
- 1/3 cup raw cashews + 1/3 cup warm water
- 1 handful nettles*, blanched
- 3/4 cup frozen cranberries**
- 1/2 cup kefir***
- 1-3 tsp honey or agave nectar
- 1 tsp flax meal
- 2 ice cubes

Combine all ingredients in blender (they layer best in the order listed), and blend using quick pulses until smooth. That's it! Seriously. Smoothies aren't hard.

* Spinach, kale, chard, arugula, etc. (no need to blanch these greens before using)
** Raspberries, blueberries, blackberries, strawberries, etc.
*** Yogurt, fruit juice, non-dairy milk, etc.


More great information about nettles can be found here.

From Field to Jar: Raspberry Jam

After a quick trek, a closed u-pick field, and a bit of navigation- Saturday afternoon was spent going a little bit crazy picking raspberries at Harvold Berry Farm in Carnation, Washington.  We had originally set out to pick at Remlinger Farms but when we got there we found out that their raspberry field was closed that day, and they directed us down the road to Harvold.  We were not one ounce disappointed, as the field was full and the berries were sweet.  Plus at $2/lb there really isn't much to complain about.  Matao and I ended up with fifteen and a half pounds!  Only a small portion of those berries went into the freezer or were eaten fresh.  The rest were made into jam!

 

The recipe that we used is just about the easiest jam you could ever make.  It consists of two ingredients: raspberries, and sugar.  That's it!  I prefer to use organic unrefined sugar, as that's what I normally cook with- but feel free to use whichever type you prefer.

Ingredients:
- 4 cups sugar
- 4 cups fresh raspberries, crushed (I pack them into my glass measure and smush smush smush)

Directions:
1. Sterilize your jars, rings and lids.  (At this stage just do the first and second steps.)
2. Add raspberries to a large stainless steel pot.  Bring berries to a full boil, smashing them with a potato masher or large spoon as they heat.  Allow to boil hard for one full minute, stirring constantly.
3. Add sugar, and return to a boil.**
4. Boil until mixture begins to form a gel.*  This may take from 5-10 minutes.
5. Spoon hot jam into dry, sterile jars.  Process using the second part of the directions from step one.  Here.  When your lids make a cute little "ping!" sound- you know that they're sealed!

* "To determine when the mixture will form a gel, use the spoon test: Dip a cool metal spoon into the hot fruit. Immediately lift it out and away from the steam and turn it horizontally. At the beginning of the cooking process, the liquid will drip off in light, syrupy drops. Try again a minute or two later — the drops will be heavier. The jam is done when the drops are very thick and two run together before falling off the spoon." - Source

**  If your jam seems too foamy once it starts cooking- adding a dab of butter to your pot will take care of it.  Otherwise it's fine to skim the foam off the top once the jam is done cooking.

Also note: It's perfectly normal for your entire kitchen to look like this once finished!  Our arms, faces, shirts, and hair were covered in little molten jam specs as well.