Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Creamed Nettles {Gream Soup}

Every spring I like to try something new from the yard, this year I tried the stinging nettles, I've been wanting to for long while. Nettles are very high in minerals, especially, iron, calcium, magnesium, potassium, phosphorous, manganese, silica, and iodine. They also provide chlorophyll and they're a good source of vitamin C, beta-carotene, and B complex vitamins. Nettles also have high levels of easily absorbable amino acids. They're ten percent protein, more than any other vegetable. It is also very easy to recognise, seeing as how it STINGS you.

 

Ingredients:

  • 1/4+ cup butter
  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 1+ cup milk (as needed)
  • soup pot full of nettle leaves
  • onions, mushrooms, zucchini, can of corn, leaks, cooked potatoes (optional)
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • dash nutmeg, lemon pepper, cayenne (optional)

Preparation:

Nettles: pick lots of leaves, spring of fall is best. wear gloves, wash & chop. Fill the pot with leaves wet from washing, cover, low heat for 10-20 min 'till leaves are wilted. next I put them in the blender with more water (1 cup) if needed, if I have zucchini or mushrooms I steam them with the nettles and put them in the blender, too, but I put the onion into the blender raw.
while steaming the nettles I melt the butter over low heat. then blend in flour until smooth. Cook until mixture is smooth and bubbly. Gradually add milk and cook, stirring, until thickened. Add blended nettles and veggies. Corn can be added now. Cover and cook stirring occasionally, until hot. Season with salt, pepper, and others of choice. let cool, serve.

My husband said it was good but tasted/smelled like fish, not sure where that came from?
The kids helped me pick the nettles so there were stems and even some roots nothing I had read said to just use the leaves so I lest them in, BIG MISTAKE the stems didn't blend well so when I was eating I had to keep pulling out fibers and woody stems, and when carefully washing I must have missed a root or two because there was dirt in it... yum :/
But I thought the flavor was very good {I had 3 bowls} and would like to make it again.

5 comments:

  1. omg stacy! that sounds nasty! lol

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  2. look at that bowl up there you know you want some :P
    it really COULD have been good... ;}

    but I did find myself thinking that it would have been great for St. Patty's day or even better April Fool's

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  3. LOL! april fools would be perfect!!

    is that a picture of mint you used? because it doesn't look like any stinging nettle i've ever seen! ;)

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  4. funny story, when I saw it starting to grow in the yard, those leaves streaks of red in the stems, I thought mint! snatched some up put it strait to my nose to smell, and OUCH! stung my nose :*} made my eyes water, but I had to laugh at myself.

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  5. hehehehehe!! that is Funny! I would have done the SAME thing!! OUCH!!

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