Peas with Nasturtium Blossoms and Mache Lettuce came about while picking peas and mache lettuce just before lunch today. I also decided to pick some Nasturtium flowers to go on my table. When I got back in the house I was thinking about how to prepare the peas and started to add garlic and olive oil to the pan, here is the results of my lunch. It turned out quite delightful, I must say and it was so pretty and so very healthy. I mean how much more fresh can you get. The produce was picked and cooked within 15 minutes.
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| Peppers will wait for another day |
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| Mache fresh from the garden |
Peas with Nasturtium Blossoms and Mache Lettuce
One serving
1 clove Garlic, sliced in fine slivers
1 teaspoon Olive Oil
1 tablespoon fresh Dill, torn from stems
1/3 cup shelled peas
1-2 cups Mache lettuce
6 to 8 Nasturtium blossoms
In a medium skillet, heat olive oil. Add garlic, dill and peas, sauté for 2 minutes. Toss in the Mache lettuce, sauté just until wilted. Add Nasturtium blossoms and stir for about 10 seconds. Sprinkle with a bit of sea salt and serve immediately.
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| Garnish with fresh Nasturtium petals and Dill |
Nasturtiums are a native of Peru, brought by Spanish conquistadors to Spain early in the sixteenth century. This bright yellow, orange or red flower traveled to England at the end of the sixteenth century as a decorative plant.
The flower gets it's name from the Latin nasusm (nose) and tortus (twisted) because their smell makes the nose wrinkle or twist. The botanical name Tropaelum is from the green tropiaon (a trophy). In ancient Greece, shields and helmets of defeated enemy were fixed onto tree trunks. It was thought that the nasturtium leaves resembled shields, with the flowers resembling helmets.
Nutritional information does not include the Nasturtium blossoms, but they are packed with vitamin C and Iron.
