I love Lovage (levisticum officinale)

Lovage is tall!  Very majestic.  Above it is shown in early spring.  It is an old country herb used frequently in Southern Europe but used rarely in Canada.  Lovage is a clump forming perennial with rhizome roots and thankfully it is very easy to grow.  It shoots up early in spring and produces well into fall and the cold weather where I live.  The plant is an umbelliferae producing greenish-yellow flowers in summer followed by ridged brown seeds.

Drink as an herbal diuretic - soothe a sore throat - flavourful salt substitute

CULTIVATION: This is a “hardy” perennial (zones 3-8) that needs light shade and a rich, moist soil to grow well.  I bought my plant years ago at Commanda Country Gardens on the Alsace Road near Commanda.  You can also start from seed.  Lovage grows up to eight feet (2.4 meters) tall and spans three feet (1 meter) so give it room to spread and plant it behind your shorter perennials. The herb likes at least six hours of sun a day but it can thrive in part shade.  Like other perennials, divide roots in second year.  I have lovage growing in three places now.


MEDICINAL USE: I am promoting the culinary use of lovage but I also find the medicinal and historical use interesting.  A tea, made from leaves and/or roots is said to be mineral-rich and aid in digestion, reduce water retention and flatulence.  Lovage is carminative (i.e., prevents flatulence or helps expel gas).  Some references talk about lovage root being used to treat menstrual disorders.  If this is an area of interest for you I recommend further exploration!  Visit this link to read a bit more....http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lovage.


CULINARY USE: Both the celery like leaves/stems and the large, aromatic roots can be enjoyed fresh or dried.  The leaves taste like celery and you can add a small handful to soups, stews, vinaigrettes and salads.  A small amount heightens the flavour in recipes allowing you to use less salt in the dish.  If you are new to this herb start off by using a tablespoon or so and see if you like it.  In soup and stew making I use a whole cup of the young leaves and stems and I do not find it too strong. I also add minced lovage to omelets, salads and even vinaigrettes.  


Roots can be peeled and eaten as a vegetable. Even the savoury seeds are edible.  The hollow stems (minus the leaves) can be fun to use as drinking straws for refreshing summer beverages. 

PRESERVING LOVAGE: 


There are a lot of ways to preserve lovage!  I like to dry it in my food dehydrator and use over the winter as a tea or in soups and stews.  I cut back the plant once or twice in summer so I get a continuous supply of young leaves.  The older leaves are stronger and not a pleasant tasting.  I simply slice leaves and stems, dry and store in glass jars.  I label and date my jars as I do end up with a lot of them... plus other people might want to know what is inside!  


Lovage also freezes well.  Chop it up and freeze in a container or bag.  Proper freezing techniques would tell you to blanch in boiling water and then freeze.  Blanching removes surface bacteria and enzymes which can cause flavour changes during freezing.  


You can also add chopped lovage to your chutneys and preserves when you are canning.  And finally, lovage preserves well as an herb vinegar.  Add it to a sterile bottle with organic white wine vinegar.  A nice flavour combination is lovage + garlic + black peppercorns.  Steep in a cool dark place.  I store all my home-made vinegars in the fridge so I don't have to worry about food safety.


Please try this recipe for Wild Leek, Lovage and Potato Chowder.  If you don't have the wild leeks and lovage you can still make it with leeks or green onions and celery.  


© Nancy Guppy, RD, MHSc
Visit me at http://nancyguppy.com/

Stevia (Stevia rebaudiana)

This post was written by Michelle Lawrence, dietetic intern with the Northern Ontario School of Medicine.  She was on placement with me for a month earlier in April.  Dietitians complete a four year bachelors degree in food and nutrition and a one year internship or a master's degree.  Michelle is a gentle and fun spirit.  She was a lot of help to me and offered her helping hands and produced excellent written work that will help me in my business.  I will miss her!

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While doing a placement with Nancy Guppy at Chapman’s Landing Cooking Studio this spring I was introduced to the stevia plant.  Stevia rebaudiana is an herb which, while native to South America, will grow in most areas of Northern Ontario (it can tolerate temperatures down to -6°C) and can be purchased at some nurseries or online. 

Stevia is a natural sweetener, approximately 200-300 times sweeter than sucrose, and can be eaten raw, dried or soaked in liquid to extract its flavour.  It can also be added to cooked/baked goods, processed foods and beverages.  Because stevia is non-caloric and does not affect blood sugar it has been touted as having large marketing potential as a commercial crop.  It is also non-fermentable, non-discolouring, maintains heat stability and has a lengthy shelf life.  Stevioside - sweet crystalline diterpene glycosides - can be extracted from the stevia plant and have been in use as sweeteners in places like New Zealand, Australia, Japan and South America for a number of years.  It has been approved for use in Canada and Health Canada guidelines outline upper limits for both medical and non-medicinal use.  http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/dhp-mps/prodnatur/legislation/docs/notice-avis-stevia-eng.php

While the food industry wrangles over the best way to exploit this plant for its sweet compounds, I recommend trying a little yourself.  Since I’ve been aware of stevia I’ve seen it in sweetened drinks at Bulk Barn etc – but I recommend the fresh if you can find it.  Iced tea is a great starting point. 

Stevia sweetened green tea iced tea with lemon:

Pour boiling water over a few green tea bags, lemon slices and a few stevia leaves and allow it to steep for at least 10 minutes (or overnight).  Chill and serve. 


This method is also really good with wild staghorn sumac in place of the green tea bags.  Add a few bunches of staghorn sumac to the mixture before steeping.  When the mixture has cooled, strain and serve.

Nancy says: a friend of mine grew a stevia plant last summer which he had purchased at the nursery near Noelville, Ontario.  The tags are show above - Freeman Herbs out of Beamsville.  He gave me the dried leaves in a jar to play with.  I have used it over the winter and spring in my cooking classes.  Some of the people like a straight stevia tea but I find this too sweet.  It is good mixed in with other teas.  A cooled batch of stevia tea can be used to naturally sweeten other juices and punches (e.g., chokecherry, mint).  Lots of potential.  I have finally found some organic stevia seeds and am going to start growing my own.

© Nancy Guppy, RD, MHSc
Visit me at www.chapmanslanding.com
for course information, menus and registration.

Staghorn Sumac

Staghorn Sumac (Rhus typhina) grows in abundance near my home.  Local food at my fingertips!  It is rewarding to gather as I can dry it and use it throughout the winter months.  I am just getting short on my supply now.    The red-berried drupes can be used fresh or dried to make delicious hot or cold beverages. I think it tastes like Red Zinger tea (Celestial Seasonings tea made from hibiscus). Impress your family and friends by brewing up some sumac tea or better yet, make my favourite mint and sumac punch.

The tartness of this sumac is partly due to the high ascorbic acid (vitamin C) content in the berries. They also contain tannin, the astringent that is in ordinary tea. Staghorn sumac was used by native people and I imagine they taught the first settlers how to make it into a refreshing bush tea. Below you can see that the leaves peak in colour in the fall.  You can pick stag sumac from August to mid-October in my area. 



Staghorn sumac is a small deciduous tree that grows in thickets or clusters. The largest trees are 10 meters (30+ feet). The ones around me are approximately 10-20 feet tall. It is named for its branches which resemble the velvety antlers of a deer. The bush is a member of the Anacardiaceae or Cashew family, and is a native to eastern North America. It grows naturally throughout Ontario and Quebec down to northern Georgia and Mississippi in the United States. The pinnate, compound leaves grow alternately along the branches. The serrated leaflets grow opposite one another. The most identifiable feature is its bright red, conical blooms of densely packed red drupes that grow from the terminal ends of the branches.

Your first task is to properly identify the plant. The 'WHITE' fruit of the 'POISON SUMAC' is as deadly as its name. The tree and fruits do not look the same and are very difficult to mix up. Use field guides to help you identify edible wild plants and you also ask someone who knows the difference to teach you. The sumac drupes are in the basket on your right in the photo below. High bush cranberry is on the left.



Collect the drupes when it hasn't rained for a few days as the rain washes out some of the malic acid and flavour components. Also, don't strip a tree of all of the seed heads or the tree can die. Take 5 or so from each tree and move on. You can pick the fruits from mid-summer through to fall. The drupes dry and stay on the trees over the winter and provide food for the birds.

HOT STAGHORN SUMAC TEA

Two large drupes, like those shown below, will make a large pot of tea. Put the fresh or dried drupes into the pot and pour boiling water over. The longer you steep the tea the darker red it will be. I steep it for at least 20 minutes and if I am going to drink it cold like an iced tea then I steep it overnight. Some sources say to soak the drupes in cold water as the boiling water method extracts too many tannins from the stalks and can make a bitter brew. I however, have used boiling water with good success. Don't boil the drupes in water. Just steep. Optional additions to the pot include garden mint and other herbs as well as whole allspice, cinnamon or cloves.




When the flavor is to your liking, strain the drink to remove seeds and hairs. The fruit can be used more than once in most circumstances. Sweeten to taste with honey or your favourite sweetener.


HOW TO DRY THE SUMAC DRUPES:

Dry the seed heads in a dehydrator or on a screen in a dry area with good air flow. You can also hang them to dry.  Below I have the drupes and high bush cranberry in a basket ready for my dehydrator.  I used my dehydrator a lot last summer as it was so wet and often raining.






NUTRITION FACTS: Staghorn sumac fruit is high in vitamin C. It also contains malic and tannic acids and I am sure it provides other nutrients but I am not sure what they are! The sumac berries used in the Arab countries, Middle East and North Africa is a different genus. Their nutritional and medicinal characteristics are cited as diuretic, reducing fever, antiseptic and anti-diarrheal.

OTHER USES FOR SUMAC: Sumac juice makes a fine jelly (like making crabapple jelly), fruit syrup and delicious wine. The jelly is good with roast meats or cheese. For these recipes you will need to make a very strong brew or decoction. Add more drupes to make a stronger infusion. You can also infuse the same batch many times discarding used sumac as you move along.



© Nancy Guppy, RD, MHSc
Visit me at www.chapmanslanding.com
for course information, menus and registration.

Wood Sorrel - free food & tea from your garden and forest

There are many species of common wood sorrel in North America (Oxalis species - oxalidaceae). The type I find at Chapman's Landing is prolific and would usually be thought of as a weed given that it is invasive and common. This wood sorrel has tiny clover shaped leaves and little yellow flowers with five petals. At night, or in cooler weather, the leaves fold up. Wild or wood sorrel is different than the broad leaf sorrel (ruminex acetosa) that I wrote about earlier this year.

The sour leaves are delicious eaten as a garden snack but I also like to add them to salads and use as edible wild garnishes. Lately I have started making wild sorrel tea and that couldn't be easier.

Other names: oxalis, sourgrass, sour trefoil, sorrel du bois



When picking from the wild it is important that you have a good field guide so you can positively identify edible wild food and avoid those which cause digestive upset, or worse, poisoning. Use three photographic references whenever possible. I use "Edible Wild Plants of Eastern/Central North America (Peterson Field Guides) and "Edible Garden Weeds of Canada" by Szczawinski and Turner. I have others but these seem to be the most used this year.



1 cup common wood sorrel - 250 ml
2 cups boiling water - 500 ml

Steep the leaves in the boiling water for 10 minutes. I find it delicious unsweetened but you can also stir in some honey. The cold tea is lemonade-like and can be added to home-made juices and punch.

MEDICINAL USE: according to folk medicine sorrel was infused as a tea to treat kidney and liver ailments. The fresh leaf and rhizome are diuretic, laxative and antiseptic. The wood sorrels contain oxalic acid which can be troublesome in larger quantities but it is not at all dangerous in moderation.


© Nancy Guppy, RD, MHSc
Visit me at www.chapmanslanding.com
for course information, menus and registration.

Fresh Herb Tisane - a year of food by the season

Mint is one of my favs and and I use it in many ways. I do love to make a fast and easy fresh mint tisane. A tisane is a hot tea-like beverage that does not contain any of the various plants from the tea family. Herbal tisane is a caffeine- free alternative to tea.

I spoke about the virtues of mint in an earlier blog. It can help improve digestion, is relaxing and helps you sleep better. More free food just outside your door!

To make a tisane you basically pick your fresh herbs and wash under cold running water. I pop them into a tea pot and cover with boiling water and then steep for 5-10 minutes. I use about 1 cup (250 ml) herbs for a quart/liter of water. I like my mint tea plain but you can add some local honey if you wish.

Some sources tell you to pick herbs in the morning when the dew is present and although I do use this approach I also pick them anytime I need them!! The cold water wash isn't essential but it helps to remove some of the surface dirt that clings to the herb. If you don't wash your herbs first you will see a small amount of sediment at the bottom of your cup when you are done. Small amounts of local dirt are healthy to eat as they contain trace minerals your body requires for chemical reactions in your body! How locavore is that! Local dirt. Our dirt provides minute amounts of boron, copper, silicon and other essential minerals.

Culinary herbs that go well in tisanes include basil, lemon balm (Melissa), parsley, thyme and sage. The mint and lemon balm are sweet herbs but you should use less of the stronger ones like parsley and sage. You can combine herbs to make your own concoction. I often add edible flowers like bergamot (bee balm), pansy and violet. You can even add crushed garlic to tea if you need a heart healthy, anti-bacterial boost.

Join me for a gourmet cooking class at Chapman's Landing Cooking Studio in Nipissing village. On June 6th we will be working with garden herbs to make tasty herb vinegars, oils, dressing and marinades. http://www.chapmanslanding.com/course_outline.asp?id=1&session=194

© Nancy Guppy, RD, MHSc
www.chapmanslanding.com
My class calendar, menus and more information is posted at my website.