Andrea

http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/archives/parsons/98promotions/april/recipes.html Recipes VERDOLAGO CON QUESO 1 quart purslane including stems Approximately one-half cup Monterey Jack cheese, shredded Collect tender purslane, including the stems, and carefully rinse to remove any sand or soil. Gently boil for about two minutes or until tender. Drain the water and chop the purslane into smaller pieces. Return the purslane to the frying pan and shred the jack cheese over it. Keep the purslane in the pan just until the cheese melts. Be careful not to over-melt the cheese. Serve warm. Serves 2. PICKLED PURSLANE 1 quart purslane stems and leaves 3 garlic cloves, sliced 1 quart apple cider vinegar (or old pickle, jalapeno juice,etc.) 10 peppercorns Clean the purslane stems and leaves by rinsing with fresh water. Cut into 1" pieces and place in clean jars with lids. Add the spices and pour the vinegar over the purslane. Keep this in the refrigerator and wait at least two weeks before using. Serve as a side dish with omelets and sandwiches. TRAVELER'S JOY 3 cups purslane, chopped 1/2 onion (wild, if avail.) 1 hard-boiled egg, sliced 1 cup chickweed 1/2 cup amaranth leaves 1 ripe avocado Approximately 1/4 cup cheddar cheese 1 teaspoon garlic salt (or other cheese), diced into small bits Juice of 1/2 lemon Much of this salad can be gathered on the trail (or in your backyard, for that matter). Chop the purslane, chickweed, amaranth, and onion into bite sized bits. Add the avocado, peeled and diced. Add one hard-boiled egg, sliced. Mix in approximately 1/4 cup of cheddar cheese which has been cut into small bits. Squeeze the lemon over the salad, add the garlic salt, and mix well. If you have them, you can add chia seeds and one tablespoon of mayonnaise to this lip-smacking salad. VERDOLAGO CON HUEVOS 2 cups purslane, with stems, diced 6 eggs 1 cup wild or domestic onion Butter1 cup nasturtium leaves and stems, diced Carefully clean and rinse the purslane. The entire above-ground plant can be used as long as it is still tender. Add the diced onion and purslane to a heated and buttered cast-iron skillet. Cook for about five minutes. Add the eggs and cook omelet-style. Serve with a tomato slice. Serves three. FRIED PURSLANE Approximately 1 cup of purslane growing tips FlourGround bread crumbs Beaten eggs Collect the tender new tips of purslane--about the last two or three inches from the stems. Rinse these in water to remove any sand. Roll them (or shake them) in flour until thoroughly floured, and then dip in the beaten eggs. Cover each purslane stalk with bread crumbs. This process is easiest to do if you simply line up the three dishes of flour, eggs, and bread crumbs, and do the breading production line style. When the breading is done, fry or saute each purslane stalk for about five minutes or until golden brown. Serve with catsup, mustard, or sour cream. This is a unique hors d'oeuvre for even your finest, fanciest parties. HAM AND PURSLANE ON RYE Delectable Sandwich 2 slices rye bread toasted or plain (or you can use whole wheat, pumpernickel, or sour dough) A few slices good quality hamA handful of fresh purslane, stems included Mustard/horseradish mix (no yellow dye, please) Instead of lettuce or pickles on this ham sandwich, you're using fresh purslane. It's quite flavorful. The slightly crunchy flavor of the crisp, succulent purslane stems helps to make this a satisfying sandwich. MEXICAN PURSLANE STUFFING This is a home-type dish that is as simple to prepare as "scrambled eggs with..." but much more nutritious. Serve as a side dish, a brunch main dish or as a filling in tortillas and pitas. 1 to 11 tablespoon vegetable oil1 small onion, finely chopped1 medium-size ripe tomato, chopped (not skinned)1 SERRANO or jalapeno chile, finely chopped, or freshly cracked black pepper, according to taste2 to 3 teaspoons low-sodium soy sauce 1 egg beaten Set aside a few raw springs of purslane for garnish. Steam or blanch the rest until tender-crisp (three to five minutes). Drain thoroughly, transfer to a plate covered with several layers of paper towels and blot dry. In a large pan, saute garlic and onion in vegetable oil until soft. Add tomato and chile, and saute until the mixture becomes sauce-like. Season with soy sauce. (If you aren't using the chile, add freshly ground black pepper.) Saute until mixture is warm and the flavors marry. When ready to serve, add the beaten egg to the warm mixture in the pan and mix gently. The egg will bind the mixture loosely but should not harden into scrambled eggs. Garnish plate servings with reserved sprigs. YIELD: 4 servings PER SERVING (estimated): 91 calories, 4 g protein, 9 g carbohydrate, 5 g fat, 68 mg cholesterol, 200 mg sodium, 68 percent U.S. RDA Vitamin A, 77 percent U.S. RDA Vitamin C. NUTRITIONAL COMPOSITION OF WILD FOODS (per 100 grams) Dashes denote lack of data for a constituent believed to be present in measurable amounts. Source: Composition of Foods, U.S. Dept. of Agriculture

http://www.starchefs.com/SJohnson/recipe05.html Cucumber-purslane-yogurt salad 5 large Cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut into quarter-round slices 1/4 pound Purslane, large stems removed, washed and drained well 2 tablespoons each, Fresh chopped mint, cilantro and chervil 4 cups Whole milk yogurt 1/4 cup Virgin olive oil 3 cloves Garlic, puréed with the blade of a knife 2 teaspoon ground Coriander kosher Salt and ground Black Pepper Place the cucumber, purslane and herbs into a large bowl. In another bowl, stir together the yogurt, olive oil and garlic, coriander and season to taste with salt. Add the yogurt mixture to the vegetables and mix well. Add a pinch of ground black pepper. Taste the dressed cucumber-purslane salad for seasoning, adding a little more salt if needed. Serve chilled.

http://landscaping.about.com/cs/weedsdiseases/a/purslane.htm The present feature lauds the view of purslane that is now gaining in popularity, namely, that it represents edible landscaping at its best: it's free, and there's no work involved in growing it. The only thing keeping this herb from its rightful place in edible landscaping is an outdated logic that says, "This plant is a weed; therefore, it must be eradicated from my landscape!" When you taste the "weed," purslane in cooking recipes, and familiarize yourself with the research concerning its nutritional benefits, you might re-think that logic. Instead of fighting it as a weed, you may begin to find it eminently logical to treat it as an herb of edible landscaping. Purslane herb has turned some heads at the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, no less, reports Usha Palaniswamy, Department of Plant Science, University of Connecticut. "Purslane is receiving much attention for cultivation by the United States Department of Agriculture as part of their effort to bring about a modification in the western diet with increased intake of fresh fruits and vegetables." Purslane just happens to contain alpha-linolenic acid, one of the highly sought-after Omega-3 fatty acids. Why pay money for fish oil when you can grow your own Omega-3 fatty acids as part of your edible landscaping? Especially when it takes little effort to grow purslane, since it does grow like a weed. No, purslane (Portulaca olearacea) isn't yet another of those leafy "rabbit-foods" that only a Ewell Gibbons could love. Purslane is more than merely edible landscaping -- it is a culinary delight! In fact, it is a succulent herb. Keep that word in mind. For "succulent" provides a hint both to the weed's identification and the potential of this edible landscaping component for cooking recipes. Purslane's stem is round and smooth, and it trails along the ground like a small vine. Young plants have a green stem, but, with maturity, stems take on reddish tints. Purslane has small, oblong, green leaves, which form clusters. The leaves resemble small wedges and, like the stem, are juicy. Has that description of purslane whetted your taste buds yet for purslane cooking recipes? Edible Landscaping Harvest: Picking and Using Purslane In order to preserve purslane's juiciness for eating, harvest this delight of your edible landscaping in the morning or evening, when you won't have to compete with intense sunlight. Purslane can either be used raw in salads or sauteed as a side dish. In addition to the crispy texture you would expect from a succulent, purslane also has an interesting peppery flavor.

A video on identifying purslane

THANK YOU!!!

Bummer, the recipe isn't in my book - mine is from 2008. Guess I'll see if they have the new ones at Wal-Mart next time I make the trek. Thanks Violet!

They turned out pretty good! I did cheat and boiled a few extra garlic cloves in the vinegar. We love garlic! I have a lot of red onions from the garden and since they don't keep well, I tried this recipe. We love red onions on our green salads and with the vinegar on the onions, you just need to add a splash of olive oil and you've got a ready made dressing! I won't fill the cabinet wih these but I'll probably make at least one more batch. They'll come in handy when I'm out of fresh reds.

LOL - I get annoyed when too many two-legged snails infest my garden! Seems to happen a lot when the berries are ripe!

6 1/2 pints of vinegared red onions last night 2 batches of pepper jelly today.

From the Ball Book: Vinegared Red Onions (yield: 6 half-pints) 3 pounds red onions 4 cups red wine vinegar 1 clove garlic Peal onions. slice onions 1/4-inch thick; separate slices into rings. Bring vinegar and garlic to a boil; reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. Add onion rings to vinegar. Simmer, covered 5 minutes. Discard garlic (I ate mine!) Pack hot onions into hot jars, leaving 1/4-inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Adjust two-piece caps. Process 10 minutes in a boiling water canner.

Violet, do you have the recipe for the honeyed red onions? I tried finding it in both of my Ball books and couldn't locate it! The vinegared red onions came out fine. I think I should have diluted the red wine vinegar with something less potent because these are really strong! A little goes a long ways. I'm going to sneak them into dh's salad tonight and see if he notices a difference. If he likes them, I'll make 6 more 1/2 pints, otherwise, I think I'm done with these for the year!

THANKS, Violet! So vinegar doesn't expire? YAY! Very good to know.

If you open the lemon juice, you'll probably find that it has turned a funky color. Lemon juice doesn't seem to last for me. As for the vinegar, I would probably use it to clean with and buy fresh to can with. When I can, I like to have fresh ingredients since I'll probably be storing the canned foods for up to 2 years. I don't know if it loses it's acidity or not, but why risk your families safety?

I use jar rings or kitchen towels. Both work fine!

Thanks Violet! I will Trudy. I have a bunch of red onions that I need to do something with too! I wish they stored better. I'm not sure why I planted so many but I'll give this recipe a try. If the onions don't mush up, I think they'll be nice over green salads during the winter.

Violet, when making a recipe with vinegar, is it okay to swap out some of the expensive vinegar with regular vinegar? I'm going to try the vinegar red onion slices in the Ball Book but it calls for 4 cups of red wine vinegar, which is pretty pricey. I was wondering if I could swap out half of the red wine vinegar with regular or apple cider vinegar? It should be safe as long as it's 5% acidity, correct?

Looks beautiful, Dee! 12 pints of salsa & 9 half pints of green and red peppers

LOVE this! And yes, our "unmentionables" always go on the middle line surrounded by sheets and towels. I guess I'm tacky though, I am guilty of leaving the clothespins on the line! LOL

Thanks all! I hit the big 46 today. No cake but we did have a special dinner.

I'm glad you posted this! I had no idea this could happen. I'm ashamed to admit, that there have been more than a few times when I've finished the last batch of whatever and then went off to bed . . . Luckily, no harm has come to us but I'll make sure and take care in the future. Thanks for opening up this can of worms. This is how we learn.

It's good to see you again, Mother!

Ooooh, this sounds interesting! We're going camping in a few weeks. Do you have a link?

Okay, had dd make these. This recipe makes a LOT but it didn't seem to matter because one week later, they are all GONE! My family inhaled these. Thanks again!

Wow, you guys garden? I'm impressed! Me? No, I don't garden. What?!? Are you telling me that bushy plant over there is an herb? Get outta here, really?!? I had no idea! Well, I'm still not eating it. Did you know it has spiders, praying mantis, and other bugs crawling in it? Eeewwwwww. No, I buy all of my food from the clean grocery store, thank you very much.

Ghost - it can take up to 2 weeks for preserves to set. Be patient. ******** 22 - half pints of apricot jam