Nasturtium large
Tropaeolum majus
Homeland of nasturtium - South America, in particular Peru. From there she as an ornamental plant came to Europe. In Russia nasturtium is widely cultivated primarily as an ornamental flowering plant and is also known under the name of Spanish or Indian cress, rolls, capuchin. The plant has a peppery, cress-like, taste and smell.
Description: Nasturtium is an annual plant with a branching curly stem. The leaves are thyroid, long-petioled, another leaf. The flowers are yellow-orange, the orange is irregular. The calyx of the flower is colored with a characteristic spur at the base. Blossoms from mid-June to frost. Propagated by seeds.
Composition: fresh leaves of nasturtium contain mustard glycoside, glucotropeolin, a large amount of vitamin C in the form of ascorbic acid. The content of vitamin C in fresh leaves of nasturtium reaches 450 mg%, and in the stems of the plant it is 100-150 mg%.
Cultivation: sunny areas, humus and light soils with sufficient water regime. Additional fertilizer is not required, otherwise there is excessive growth. Sowing is made in the open pound after snow melting in a square-nest way or in rows at a distance of 30 cm. The site for growing nasturtium is prepared in spring: shallow dig, level with rakes and make grooves 2-3 cm deep at a distance of 25-30 cm. Large seedsplants are laid out in prepared grooves at a distance of 5 cm from each other and closed with soil. Seedlings appear after 10-15 days. Care for nasturtium is the weeding of weeds, loosening and watering. It is possible to grow in vases, for example in hanging vases.
Collection: in summer, young shoots, leaves and nasturtium flowers are constantly harvested for use as spices. Use only fresh!
Medicinal properties: improves digestion, is used for infections of the respiratory and urinary tract. Traditional medicine uses nasturtium as a diuretic. Outerly mashed leaves or juice is used to soothe the itching, rubbing into the scalp with hair loss. For domestic use, folk medicine offers infusion of fresh flowers in hypertension.
Application: the whole plant - ground stems, leaves, flower buds and unripe fruits - has a pleasant tangy taste. Nasturtium has long been used in cooking as a condiment for salads, meat, vegetable and egg dishes. Green fruits of nasturtium are used as spices when pickling vegetables. Marinated with dill, flower buds and green fruits are used as a replacement for capers. Do not use in large quantities! You can decorate any dish with edible flowers.
Borage
Borago officinalis .Annual herb spicy and vegetable plant. His homeland is the East or,
perhaps, the African coast of the Mediterranean. In the wild, borage is found in Europe and North America. Other names of borage are cucumber grass, borage and borage medicinal.
Description: The height of borage is 10-60 cm, the leaves are twofold. The rosette leaves are large,
oval, petiolate, cauline leaves alternating, sessile, ovate-oblong. The whole stem is covered with hard hairs. Flowers are very beautiful, elegant, drooping, starry, blue or white. Blossoms borage from May to September.
Ingredients: The most valuable component is a significant amount of curative mucus. In addition, borage contains tannins, saponin, tar, calcium, 2 % of silicic acid, a large amount of vitamin C, carotene and potassium.
Cultivation: cultivated in vegetable gardens, but also found in the wild. Borage is a cold-resistant plant. It can be sown in early spring and under winter. To the soil, this plant is not demanding and is characterized by drought resistance, however, in dry and hot weather, the leaves coarsen and a flower stem quickly forms. To obtain a delicate herb, borage is best sowed on fairly fertile light soils, which quickly dry out in the spring. When sowing in the summer, the site for borage is removed in shaded areas. In droughty weather, the crops are watered.
Seeds are sown in an ordinary way with a distance between the rows of 25-30 cm or on a large area of 45-50 cm. To avoid thinning, they are laid out at a distance of 8-12 cm and sealed to a depth of 2-2.5 cm. The seeds germinate on 6-8th day, and after 25-30 days, the young greens of borage are ready for use. Leaves and flowers are collected as needed. Borage is sown in several terms, every 15-18 days. When summer-autumn planting, greens are obtained late in the autumn, when there are no fresh cucumbers, which is especially valuable. To get the earliest greens of borage, it can be grown in greenhouses and film greenhouses. Borage
is practically not affected by diseases and pests.
Collection: you can collect grass, leaves or just flowers during the flowering period. The grass is cut off from the ground, cleared of the lower leaves and dried in the shade.
Medicinal properties: has a diuretic, diaphoretic and anti-inflammatory effect. In folk medicine it is recommended to use a decoction of young leaves and flowers in beriberi, for purifying blood, strengthening the heart and nervous system, against coughing and rheumatic pain.
Application: borage has a weak, unspoken odor. The taste is unusually refreshing, reminiscent of cucumbers from the garden, with a sharp onion flavor. From the young leaves prepare a salad and mashed potatoes, both from spinach. Add borage to other salads - potato and vegetable, as well as in various seasonings. Many people like it in mayonnaise, soups, sauces, especially in mustard, tomato and sour cream, as a seasoning for Savoy, white and red cabbage.
In some European kitchens borage is used in finely chopped form with onion
Vegetable oil with cucumber grass
150 g of vegetable oil, 2 tbsp.l.cucumber grass, dill, chives, or onions. Mix the oil with finely chopped leaves of cucumber grass, dill, chives or onion, add a little lemon juice, salt, pepper. Use for making sandwiches, toast, meat.
Cabbage salad with borage
2 cabbage lettuce, 1 onion, a handful of sliced borage, 1 tbsp.l.vegetable oil and lemon juice
Rinse the leaves of cabbage salad and coarsely chop, add onion, sliced into thin rings, a handful of finely chopped borage leaves, salt, pepper, butter, lemon juice( or vinegar) and serve to the table.
Spring spring with borage
On 05l kvass - 5-b of borage leaves, 4-5 leaves of cress-salad, 30 g of green onion, 10 g of dill, 40 g of potatoes, 1/2 eggs, 30 g.meat or boiled sausage, 2-3 tsp.sour cream, salt, sugar to taste Young leaves of cucumber grass cut into and grind. Leaves of watercress, green onions, dill finely chopped. Add the boiled potatoes, egg, meat or sausage and pour everything with kvass, stir. Serve with sour cream.
or other herbs for cooking green oil, is added to cheeses and sour cream. It gives a piquant taste to minced meat, minced meat and fried fish.
It is also consumed as a separate dish, like spinach, blanched or stewed in vegetable oil. With borage can be prepared spicy cottage cheese. To do this, the cottage cheese needs to be grinded from 1 tbsp.l.cream, add salt and mix with finely chopped borage. This refreshing dietary dish, especially on a hot day, can be served with warm toasts. Add borage and in refreshing tonic drinks. Fresh and dried flowers are used in the confectionery industry for the aromatization of vinegar, as well as for decorating dishes from fresh vegetables and fruits.