Want a super food for allergies?

Try Nettles!

This is soup made with them. Here's the recipe!

Adapted from Irish Traditional Cooking by Darina Allen

5 oz. young nettles
4 Tbsp butter
10 oz. potatoes, chopped
4 oz. onions, chpped 4 oz leeks (white parts only), chopped
Salt and fresh ground pepper
1 3/4 cup good quality chicken stock
1/2 cup cream or full-fat milk

Blanch the nettles in boiling water.  Drain them in a colander and set aside.
Melt butter in a soup pan over medium heat and add the potatoes, onions and leeks. Saute until the vegetables soften a bit (5-10 minutes).  Season with salt and pepper.
Add the chicken stock and cook until the potatoes are soft all the way through.  Add the nettles to this mixture and transfer to a blender or food processor.  Thin with the cream and serve warm.



My seasonal allergies are now in full swing.  The first thing I always reach for is my nettle tincture.  This has been my miracle when I am sneezing, and my eyes and throat are itching.  I just put a dropperful under my tongue and chase it with water (because it is not a pleasant taste).  Joane to the rescue the first year I had these terrible allergies; I now buy these each year.  I was super excited when my aunt Barbara told us she was bringing this soup for Easter dinner.  Any way I can get nettles in my diet is a +!
Another thing I just tried this year is chewing seeds of culinary nigella.  I found these in the Ethiopian market in Cherry Hill when I was making a recipe of greens to go with my lentil wot.  Dustin started chewing about a 1/4 teaspoon of them every morning and claimed they cleared up his allergies considerably.  So I'm trying them out.  It seems to be working, whether its a placebo effect or not.
Always looking for other good and natural alternatives to chemical allergy meds, so please share if you have any!

Nettles Superfood profile