I was looking through a recipe book the other night looking for a recipe for pakora. On my shelf was a recipe book that I bought at Samye Ling Tibetan Monastry in the Scottish borders. I saw a recipe for Colostrum which I found rather strange but now it makes more sense.

Colostrum is the “first milk” produced from a cow when it’s young are born, otherwise known as “beastings”. I found this a little strange as I had been under the impression that the Monks at Samye Ling were supposed to be vegan or at least very strict vegetarian. Well that was what I belived before I stayed there for a couple of nights a few years ago. Yes, the food served was healthy vegetarian wholefood. The prridege was inedible though ( the most wallpaper paste consistency I have ever known for porridge. I am glad that I love it raw now so will not offend anyone who offers me a bowl that I can’t eat without gagging!

The other things I found bizzare about staying there was “the smoking corner down by the burn” as this is supposed to be a strictly no smoking, no drinking site, hence why I booked myself in there for 2 nights and headed there with some herbal teas, yoga mat and NO tabacco ( as I was wanting a chilled out place to start my nicotine withdrawl from). Then I overheard a monk saying that he had bacon & eggs for breakfast tomorrow and inviting his friend round to share it. Then the really funny one was when the firealarm went off about 2am and a monk was going a bit beserk swearing openly about the guy who was the one nominated to attend any firedrills and the going beserk monk was ranting that he should have been in his bloody caravan. Samye Ling is a pretty stunning place in the middle of such beautiful countryside but it did not meet my expectations of a chilled environment with everyone mucking in on the daily food prep and gardening chores I had read about.

Here is the recipe from the Samye Ling cookery book:

Colostrum, also known as “first milk” or “beasings”, is the milk which comes from the cow directly after calving/ First milk contains 20% albuminous matter and has a very yellow colour. Sinve ther is often too much for the young calf, we often get our custard from the excess beastings. As it coagulates upon heating, due to the high albumen content, just put in a pirex or baking trays, sprinkle ground nutmeg on top and bake in a moderate oven until set.

I looked up colostrum in Tibetan culture:

In Tibetan culture it is noted that colostrum has especially regenerative properties & it symbolises spirtual nourishment and the abandonment of negative actions.

On googling stinging nettles, I found it a bit of a shame to see that there were as many sites on how to get rid of stinging nettles as there was on their many uses.  But one thing  came up on google that was amusing news to me was the world nettle eating championships, here is the link to BBC story  http://www.bbc.co.uk/dorset/content/articles/2005/06/17/nettle_eating_feature.shtml

Medicinal uses:

For centuries nettles have been used in medicinal use in the forms of a tincture, ointment, compress, tea or powdered form.

They are packed with vitamin C and also contain vitamins A, B1, B2, vitamin E and Vitamin K as well as containing Iron and calcium and magnesium.

Gout:

Gout is caused due to a build up of uric acid in the blood which leads to join inflammation. Taking nettles can help to flush out excess uric acid from the blood.

Bronchitis and pleurisy:

As nettles have anti-viral  and expectorant properties and are said to be good to clear the chest of mucus.

Asthma:

The antihistamine properties make nettles good for those suffering with asthma.

Colds and flu:

Nettles can help to fight off signs of colds and flu, due to the anti viral properties and the levels of vitamin C.

Depression:

Vitamin B levels in nettles can help to elevate mood.

Hayfever.

The anthisthamine in the nettles will help to give a resistance to hay fever symptoms.

Uses in the garden:

Nettle leaves are used by ladybirds to rear their larve on so giving your garden help against aphids from your fruit and vegetable crops. Other uses are as a fungicide and insecticide.

There is a great book, 101 uses for stinging nettles by Piers Warren. For more detail of the many wonderful uses of this fantastic plant

click on this link to view the cover , or to buy the book http://www.wildeye.co.uk/stinging-nettles/

I was given this book for Christmas a couple of years ago, and it still surprises me when I look at the book to see just  how many ways nettles can be good for our gardens and our bodies.

Spring treat:

One of my favorite spring activities is the first time in a year when I go into some woodland to find the early, small, young nettles. I now keep a pair of thick rubber gloves and a carrier bag in the glove compartment of my car ready for nettle picking. With most things that I pick I do not bother donning gloves,  as I do not mind a little staining from berries etc, but nettles are a different matter completely when it comes to the consequences of picking to make a big batch of my nettle soup.

My nettle soup recipe:

Gently fry a couple of large onions and a couple of handfulls of green lentils in a little butter and oil. This is best done in the biggest pan you can find in the kitchen.

Add a couple of large potatoes ( diced ) and fry for a couple of minutes.

Vegatable stock then needs to be added and when the potatos have softened add your nettles.

This is why I suggested using the biggest pan as they will overflow if the pan is not gigantic, but they very quickly wilt so push the pile of nettle into the liquid quickly.

The amount you will need is about 1 carrier bag full. These need of course to be washed well, and can be done by tipping out the bag into cold water and with gloved hands, moving the water around to rinse. Repeat this and drain the water and any little bugs that are left will be killed in the cooking process, adding a bit of extra protein!

The nettles cook quickly so there is no need to simmer for very long.

Season with a good amount of grated nutmeg, salt and pepper and blitz using a hand blender.

The finnished soup will be thick in consistency and be a lush green in colour & is  good served with a little swirl of double cream. Nettle soup is an especially  comforting luch when served with a good wholemeal bread, cheese sandwich to dunk into the funky green, vitamin packed soup.

I came accross a refreshment stall during the Edinburgh Festival that sold Tahini bliss balls.

I bought one to see what they were like & put it ( carefully wrapped in a napkin ) in my pocket to eat on the train back home.

I was looking forward to it, and it was pretty good, but, a bit dry & not quite as good as my tastebuds were anticipating.

So I decided to try and make my own version ( without loading them to the hilt with guarana , as I had chronic insomnia the night I ate the one I bought ). But I will probably bake a batch of guarana loaded ones to take to Glastonbury next year. Also the one I bought uses rice crispies and I use oats in my version.

I would not usualy weigh out the ingredients for these, but, as a guideline I weighed  ingredients & timed the cooking tonight.

Tahini bliss balls:

Put 8oz oats into a bowl

add 1 handful of roasted pumkin seeds

1 handful of sunflower seeds

1 handful toasted sesame seeds

2 handfuls of dessicated coconut

4 heaped dessetspoons tahini

If the tahini you use is thick in consistency, rub the tahini into the rest of the ingredients at this stage to disperse it evenly.

Then add:

2 lg dessert spoons of honey   ( I use acacia as it is light and sweet )

2 lg dessert spoons of golden syrup ( this was not meant to be calorie free )

and then blend the mixure with a spoon pushing down whilst stiring to moisten all the dry ingredients.

Then add 4oz of melted butter & mix in well.

This mix will make 12 - 20 balls depending on the size of your hands and how hard you squeeze your balls!!

Pick up a handful and squeeze it into a ball so the mixture holds together.  You may want to scrape off the excess mix from your hands and wash every your hands every few balls, as it makes it easier to shape the next one.

Bake at 180 for about half an hour, and they should be a nice golden brown when ready.

There is no need to pre grease the tin but, do leave them on the tray intil cool. This way a sharp push undereath with a fish slice should get them off the tray without them breaking.

I think I will add some hemp seeds from now on as they are so good for you, and call them tahini hemp bliss balls.