Florentine Facsimile - Nettle Quiche

It's time for another recipe with Stinging Nettles.  Woo Hoo!   I adore Nettles.  They are one of my favorite "Flavors of Spring", along with Asparagus and Rhubarb.  Normally I just steam 'em up and eat them or chop them into Nettle-Walnut Pesto, but I thought that I would do something special with them today.  Mainly because the season is ending and they are beginning to go "to seed".  Once that happens, they are no longer fit for human consumption. Well, I suppose you could still eat them, but the leaves get tough and sort of stringy.  So, yeah, no.... not tasty.

I had already decided to make breakfast for dinner, cause I am a rebel that way, but I was disconcerted about the lack of a vegetable to accompany my Hash Browns and Bacon.  Steamed nettles would have worked, but that doesn't sound very breakfasty.  Then I got to thinking about frittatas and omelets, which while very much a breakfast food, usually do not contain that much veggie.  Then it hit me.  Nettles are like spinach and spinach is a key ingredient in Quiche Florentine.   AH HA!  Breakfast conundrum solved!

So, I set out to make a Florentine-esque quiche with Stinging Nettles and Bergkase cheese (though Havarti or Grasskaas would have been nice too) instead of the proverbial Spinach and Swiss.
 

Nettle Quiche

1 10-inch parbaked Pastry Crust
12 oz (340g) fresh Nettles
6 large Eggs
1 1/2 cups (350ml) Crème Fraîche
Kosher Salt
White Pepper
Dash of Nutmeg
1/2 Shallot, minced
Olive Oil
4 oz Bergkase (Havarti or Grasskaas)

Once you have partially baked your pastry crust at 400 for 15 minutes,

Reduce the oven temperature to 325F degrees and rinse your nettles well.

After rinsing them, blanch them for 2 minutes in boiling water, then drain them in a colander and let them cool enough for handling.

In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs until well blended.

Add the Creme Fraiche along with the Salt, White Pepper and Nutmeg, then whisk well until smooth.

Once the Nettles are cool enough, squeeze all the water out,

and give them a rough chop.

In a small skillet, heat olive oil and saute the shallot until soft.

Add the chopped nettles and heat through.

Spread the warm Nettle/Shallot mixture over the bottom of the Quiche crust.

Sprinkle with 2 oz of the Bergkase.

Gently pour the custard over the Nettles.

Sprinkle with the remaining Cheese.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the center is just beginning to set.

Let rest for 5-10 minutes before cutting.

A delicious, if rebellious, dinner.  :)

Mangia!!
~~

Foraging On The Forest Floor - Creamy Nettle Soup

I always have been, and probably always will be, a Mountain Man.  Not necessarily in a Grizzly Adams or creepy survivalist sort of way.  More of a "this is where I find peace" sort of way.  I know this, simply because I spent 15 years in San Diego, minus the 2 years I lived in Palm Springs.

I can hear you saying, "What does that have to do with anything?"

Basically this;  I lived in what is suppose to be "America's Finest city"; and with some massive infrastructure upgrades, it just might be.  I was surrounded by sand, palm trees and sun.  Yet I think I spent a total of 5 hours at the beach in 15 years I lived down there.  For when I needed to relax and decompress, leaving behind the stresses of everyday life, I traveled 45 miles outside the city to Julian or Alpine.  While living in Palm Springs yet again, I drove 35 miles outside the city to either Big Bear or Idyllwild.

What do all these places have in common?  They are all perched atop mountains, far from the Dessert floor or the Ocean waves and, more importantly, far from the insanity of freeways, potholes, broken sewer lines spewing into the bay, rush hour traffic, sink holes and rude people.  Yes, my solace was to be found above 4000 feet.  None of those crashing ocean wave ions for me.  Give me the scent of clean crisp air, trees and moist leaf litter.  (Did you know palm trees don't smell? At least , *I* can't smell them. Odd, huh?) 

So, now I am safely enveloped in a protective screen of Hemlock, Alder, Western Red Cedar, Spruce, Douglas Fir, Yew, Dogwood, Broad leaf and Vine Maple with a scattering of Elder.  (it smells SO good outside, especially when it rains) Now I won't lie to you.  Their is a price to be paid for all this vibrantly verdant vegetal goodness...  Rain.

It rains a lot in the Pacific NW.  (We don't call it the "Great North WET" for nothin') As a matter of fact, that was part of the reason I left Oregon to begin with.  I was experiencing, what I thought was, Seasonal Affected Disorder.  What better place than sunny San Diego, right?  I have come to the conclusion that it was an age thing though.  Granted, I have only been back for a little over a year.  But, it's been pretty darn wet and overcast to the point where the lack of sunlight has caused me to become so pale, that I swear I will glow if exposed to black light.  But, I have not been experiencing any sort of depression. Maybe I outgrew it, maybe I was just experiencing a vitamin D deficiency and didn't know it, or maybe I am just so glad to have my mountains and trees back that it compensates for the effects of gloomy overcast skies broken only by the pervasive patter of precipitation.  (Or, I was just a young punk who didn't know how good he had it and thought the grass was "greener" on the other side of the fence)  LOL

But rain and S.A.D. aside......

The time has finally come.  There have been a few precious breaks in the clouds, releasing the rays of that ever elusive orange orb in the sky.  This has caused a western Oregon phenomenon to occur, for the harbingers of our rainy spring have "sprung" forth from their winter hibernation.... The Trilliums.

Once the trilliums bloom, many foresty things begin to happen...  Most of them are edible too.  Woo Hoo!!!   For starters, it's time to pick Morel mushrooms.  YUM!  The other exciting thing is the gathering of the nettles.  For they too, have begun their slow and methodical take-over of every empty patch of forest floor.  Poking their little heads through the forest hummus.  (Please wear gloves)

So armed with a heaping bowl of nettles, picked during one of the cloud cover's less drippy moments, I embarked upon one of my favorite foods when it's cold and wet...  Soup.

For nettles make awesome soup fodder.  Normally I would make Nässelsoppa which is a lively Scandinavian combination of nettle puree, beef stock, cream and chives to be served with a sliced boiled eggs on the side.  But I decided to take a queue from those clever Greeks and mix it up a little by putting the egg IN the soup this time.  Think Avgolemono soup, but with Cream, Nettles and an elusive hint of Saffron grassiness.   It's like a sunshine dappled forest in a bowl.

Creamy Nettle and Saffron Soup

4 cups (950 ml) Chicken Stock
1/8 tsp Saffron Threads (a pinch)
4 oz (110g) Nettle tops
Water as Kosher Salt for Blanching
2 large Egg Yolks
Lemon juice, to taste (About 1/2 of a medium lemon)
1/4 cup (60 ml) Heavy Cream
Kosher Salt
White Pepper

Soak the nettles in salted water for 10 minutes before drying in a salad spinner.

Heat the chicken stock in a medium pot, adding the saffron as the stock begins to warm.

(Yes, it's time to break out the precious saffron; but you only need a little bit.)  :)

In a separate pot, begin heating some salted water over high heat.

Once the Stock and Saffron come to a boil, remove from the flame and let set for 4 minutes before scooping out the threads. (this is a personal preference. I love saffron, but I don't like biting into the threads)

Using tongs (to keep from feeling the sting) plunge nettles into the salted boiling water and blanch for 2 minutes.

Remove from the water and spin in the salad spinner again, to remove excess water. (you can chop them if you like, but I like the whole tops floating in the soup)

In a small bowl, whisk egg yolks with lemon juice until pale.

Whisk a ladle-ful of the hot stock into the yolk mixture to condition the yolks. (I always whisk in a second ladle-ful just to be on the safe side)

Whisk the egg mixture back into the stock.

Then stir in the cream.

Add the blanched Nettles,

Then gently reheat over low flame, without boiling or it will curdle.

Season with White Pepper and Kosher Salt to taste.

You may need to adjust the acidity of the soup by adding a little more lemon juice....  I had a small lemon, so I resorted to using the whole thing, instead of only half of it.

Then serve.

Mangia!!
~~

Foraging on the Forest Floor - Stinging Nettle Pesto

So I am going to let you in on a little secret, in case you have decided to go 'Pot Hunting' (Mushroom hunting) in the Columbia River Gorge.... It's still too early for morels, regardless of the warm weather we have been having.

Needless to say, after bumbling though the bountiful blackberry briar bushes, I came back shroom-less. BUT... Yes, that is a big "But". My forager's instincts had been awakened only to be unleashed upon the forest floor. So instead of shoving shrooms in my satchel, I nimbly nabbed numerous nettles, neatly nestling them in my knapsack.

I figured since Morel Risotto was out of the question, I would at least leave with one of my favorite foraged ingredients and make a Nettle Pesto, with which I would lavishly smother my Linguine. I chose Walnuts for this because pine nuts would not be "strong" enough to stand up the the flavor of the nettles. It was the same with the cheese. When I make Pesto, I use a mixture of Parmigiano-Reggiano and Pecorino Romano, but nettles are more intense than basil, so the more pungent cheese is the choice. Grab that Pecorino Romano baby. Although I think Asiago might work just as well.....

I have dealt with handling Nettles in preparation for Ravioli di Ortica alla Pusteresi, as well as posting about Pesto Genoese, way,Way, WAY back; shortly after I started this blog. The process, by which I make pesto, is by hand, with a mezzaluna; but by all means, if you prefer the food processor then go for it. It's simply a personal preference. I like a more rustic multi-textured pesto, and this can only be achieved with a mezzaluna. A food processor will create a nice uniformly chopped pesto.

Pesto Suolo Forestale

(Forest Floor Pesto)

6 oz (160 g) Nettle tops
4 cloves Garlic (I used 5 cause 2 were very small)
Kosher Salt
2.2 oz (65 g) Walnuts
1.5 oz (45 g) Pecorino Romano
Juice of 1/2 Lemon
8 oz (235 ml) Extra Virgin Olive oil

Bring a pot of water to a boil over high heat.

Meanwhile wash the Nettles (don't touch them)

Move nettles (with gloves) to the boiling water and blanch for 1 minute.

Drain and spray with cold water to stop the cooking.

Squeeze the water out (Just like spinach)

Place about 1/2 the nettles and the garlic on a cutting board with a pinch of salt and begin chopping them with a mezzaluna.

Add 1/2 the walnuts and chop some more.

Add 1/2 the remaining nettles and 1/2 the cheese; then Chop Chop a whole lot more.

Add the remaining Walnuts and Nettles then Chop Chop Choppity Chop.

Then finally, add the last of the cheese and... yep, you guesses it... chop away.

Mash it together so it can me moved to a dish.... I always make it a square cause I use a square container.

Sprinkle with the juice of 1/2 a Lemon.

Then pour Extra Virgin Olive oil over it

and smash with a fork to work the oil into the mixture.

Tada! Pesto from the Forest Floor...

Now anoint some linguine with the Nettle-y goodness and sprinkle with a little more Pecorino Romano...

Delicious!


Mangia!!
~~