Spring herbs in the kitchen and prepping for hard times
There used to be an old bamboo wind chime in front of my apartment, but we took it down in recent storms; its once sacred wood clap became a constant reminder of unseasonable winds now blowing fire all across the carolinas. The seasons are collapsing. My foraging calendar is sometimes a whole month behind my actual ecosystem, and I’m scrambling to get with the program. Despite how not okay all that is, how not okay I have been, there’s no denying my excitement to see our precious spring plant relatives popping up whenever they are ready to emerge. We're all showing up the best we can.
Here are a few recipes — a condiment, a seasoning, an ice cube — full of spring brightness and will, that can just be tossed into whatever you have during the hard times that might have you scrambling.
Spring greens pesto
Above: A tender heart-shaped garlic mustard leaf found in a patch of ramps
Does every herbalist have a pesto recipe? I have a batch of this in my fridge for dipping snap peas, bell peppers, celery…you name it. Pesto is a versatile preparation for any size spring forage, and tucks more herbs into your food.
Ingredients:
3-4 cloves garlic, peeled
3-4 cups spring greens (tulsi or other basil species, radish tops, dandelion leaves, violet, chickweed, arugula, nettle, lemon balm, garlic mustard, wild garlic, etc), rinsed and patted dry
1 Tbsp lemon juice
1/2 cup good olive oil
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Optional: 1/2 cup walnuts or pine nuts
Optional: zest of 1 lemon, or splash of herb-infused vinegar like Unfurl Spring Tonic
Directions:
Add all ingredients to the food processor and blend it up! Add olive oil until you get the desired texture. Less or more of anything to taste. This makes a big batch - some for now and some for the freezer. Enjoy atop toast, salad, pasta, soup, or just scoop it up with chopped veggies like me.
Fresh bouillon
Above: A fresh herbal bouillon
Another great way to bring more herbs into the kitchen this season is to make a fresh herbal bouillon. All you need are herbs and vegetables of your choice, and sea salt.
Ingredients:
About equal parts of:
Nutritive herbs and leafy vegetables like celery, nettle, spinach, carrot tops
Nutritive roots like carrot, burdock, dandelion, parsnip
Aromatic herbs like rosemary, thyme, lemon balm, basil, garlic, onion
Sea salt
Directions:
Mince each ingredient finely or process them all together in a food processor, then store in a jar with well-fitted lid.
A bioregional way to do this is adding layers of salt with herb/veg as they are in season throughout the year. For example, start with leafy greens in the spring and summer, then roots in the fall. Add a layer of herb/veg, then add just enough salt to cover, and repeat so each veg layer is covered by salt. Store in the fridge until ready to mix together.
Use the bouillon in place of salt in a recipe, adding a spoonful to boost nutrients and flavor in your food. The bouillon can be kept in the fridge for a year. You can also freeze the bouillon, or dehydrate and powder it to make something similar to what you’d find at the grocery store.
Violet lemon ice cubes
Above: Peregrine sharing about Violet flowers on a cold spring day
We can gently boost the body’s natural detoxification processes — clear out the old and welcome the new — by taking in more lymphatic herbs like Violet. Violet tea is also softening and soothing to the heart, here mixed with a splash lemon juice and frozen into cubes to add herbal support into any drink.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup roughly chopped fresh violet leaves and flowers, plus a few whole flowers (optional) to freeze
2 cups filtered water
Juice of 1 lemon
Directions:
Bring the water to boil in a pot. Then, turn the heat off and stir in chopped Violet. Cover and steep until the blend is around room temp. Strain out the herbs. Add lemon juice to the tea, then pour into ice cube moulds. Place some whole Violet flowers, if using, into each mould. Freeze and use these cubes to refresh any beverages throughout the spring!
Above: Refreshing lemon + johnny jump-up ice cubes