[Sca-cooks] Sorrel, was Purslane

[Anne-Marie Rousseau]

the stuffed eggs from la Varenne call for sorrel (mmm), and for modern cooking, I 
like to layer sliced yellow squash, zuchini and red bell pepper in my steamer with 
fresh sorrel leaves and steam till just done. the leaves impart this lovely lemon 
flavor and with cracked black pepper and salt, I find it doesnt need any butter :)

sorrel grows like a week here inSeattle...I need to put it in a pot to contain it!

--AM



On Wed Aug 16 10:29 , lilinah at earthlink.net sent:

>Maire wrote:
>>No purslane recipes, but I *do* have 3 healthy sorrel plants, and outside of
>>chopping up a few leaves for additions to a salad, or putting them in a
>>tart, what else can I do with them?
>
>Mmm, sorrel soup.
>
>-----
>
>In searching the web, most recipes i've found are variations of the 
>French type - with creme fraiche or heavy cream, egg yolks, etc. 
>Here's one version...
>
>Soup d'Oseille et pommes de terre
>Potato and Sorrel Soup
>[oseille is pronounced more-or-less oh-ZAY]
>from Provence, France
>
>7 oz. sorrel leaves (or substitute young spinach leaves),
>2 Tablespoons olive oil
>1 onion, finely chopped
>2 large potatoes, peeled and cut into julienne strips (1-1/2 inches 
>long/1/4 inch thick)
>7-8 cups vegetable broth
>1 teaspoon salt
>3 egg yolks
>1/2 cup sour cream
>
>1. Remove the stems from the sorrel. Stacking several leaves on top 
>of each other, roll them up lengthwise and then cut them into thin 
>ribbons crosswise. Continue chiffonading the res of the sorrel, and 
>set aside a few tablespoons for garnish.
>2. Heat the olive oil in a large dutch oven and saute the onion, 
>stirring, until it is lightly colored.
>3. Add the potatoes and stirring continuously, cook them for about 5 
>minutes or until lightly colored.
>4. Add 7 cups of the broth and salt and bring to a boil over high heat.
>5. Add the sorrel chiffonade, reduce the heat to low, and cook for 
>about 10 minutes or until the potatoes are tender.
>6. Whisk the egg yolks and sour cream together in a small bowl.
>7. Pour a spoonful of the hot soup into the egg/sour cream mixture 
>and whisk to combine.
>8. Whisking the soup constantly, pour the tempered eggs back into the soup.
>9. Cook the soup over low heat, moving the soup pot back and forth on 
>the burner and continuing to stir with a wooden spoon. Do not allow 
>the soup to boil; it should begin to slowly thicken.
>10. Taste and add more salt if necessary. Thin with as much of the 
>remaining cup of broth as necessary to get a nice consistency.
>
>To serve, ladle the soup into 6 heated serving plates and garnish 
>with the reserved chiffonade.
>
>[Note that it has 1/2 egg yolk and 2 tsp. sour cream per person, for 
>those concerned about calories from fat...]
>
>-----
>
>Here's one that sounds refreshing for hot summer weather and it's low in fat
>
>Sorrel Salad Soup with Chives  
>Makes 8 small bowls
>
>This one's an old-fashioned English classic and perfect if you have a 
>bumper crop of sorrel or know where to get it cheap. It's an 
>adaptable recipe however so you can use rocket, watercress, or other 
>leaves instead. Just add a good squeeze of lemon juice.
>
>1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded, and shopped
>1 clove garlic, thinly sliced
>800 ml seasoned chicken or vegetable stock.
>400 gm sorrel washed coarse stems removed and chopped
>250 gm mixed salad leaves
>salt
>black pepper
>chopped chives (optional)
>
>Put the cucumber, garlic, and stock into a saucepan and bring to the boil.
>Lower the heat and simmer for about 4 minutes or until the cucumber is soft.
>Add sorrel and salad leaves and stir
>Remove from the heat and allow to cool to room temperature.
>Puree in a food processor until very smooth.
>Chill in the fridge.
>Taste before serving and add salt and pepper if necessary (chilled 
>soups sometimes require a little extra seasoning to bring out the 
>flavor).
>Serve with an ice cube in each, and topped with chives.
>
>-----
>
>Here's the one i'm most familiar with
>
>Schav
>Sorrel Borscht  
>Serves 6
>
>4 cup water
>2 sprigs dill
>3 scallions, diced
>1 lb sorrel, steamed & chopped
>1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
>1/4 tsp salt
>1/2 tsp black pepper
>2 Tb brown sugar
>2 eggs
>1 cup cold water
>3 red potatoes, boiled and halved
>1 cup sour cream
>Chopped fresh dill
>Chopped cucumbers
>
>In a soup pot, bring the water, dill & scallions to a medium boil & 
>cook for 5 minutes.
>Add the chopped sorrel & lemon juice, salt, pepper & sugar. Simmer 
>for 10 minutes.
>Remove from heat & discard the dill sprigs.
>
>In a large bowl, beat the eggs with the cold water till light.
>Very slowly pour 2 cups of the hot stock into the egg mixture, 
>stirring constantly to prevent curdling.
>Then pour egg mixture back into the soup pot, stirring thoroughly.
>
>Chill until very cold, at least 3 hours.
>Just before serving, add half a cooked potato to each bowl. Top with 
>a generous spoonful or two of sour cream, top with chopped cucumbers, 
>and garnish with chopped dill.
>
>
>
>
>-- 
>Urtatim (that's err-tah-TEEM)
>the persona formerly known as Anahita
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