Another event brought me back to Harriton House last weekend. This time it was the Harriton Plantation Fair and featured horseback rides, sheep herding, Pennsylvania Dutch barbecue, music, log cutting and the infamous Stinging Nettle Eating Contest.

Rose Bochansky, the assistant to Curator Bruce Gill, thought up this event and was one of the 5 contestants. Being a vegetarian, I think Rose thought she was a lock to win, but Rose had no idea that my friend Barbecue Bob, that meat-eating gourmand was going to show her how to wolf down a pile of stinging nettles and win the first place prize, a case of beer. (Photo is of Rose and Bob extracting honey from honey bee combs back at the end of July.)

Stinging nettle (or should I say Urtica dioica) is an herbaceous flowering plant that can be found in Europe, Asia, Africa and Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania. It is covered with tiny little hairs that act as needles that release a toxin when penetrating the skin. The toxin is harmless but burns at first and causes a nasty itch afterwards.

Why Eat Stinging Nettles

Not that I’m recommending you eat them raw, but stinging nettle has been used by many cultures as an herbal medicine. Because they are rich in calcium and iron, nettle is often used to make soups. (See http://www.umm.edu/altmed/articles/stinging-nettle-000275.htm) Supposedly, when you cook the leaves, the stinging hairs are disabled.

Some people dry the leaves, crush them and use them for making tea. I have also heard young plants with new leaves are more tasty than older plants. The leaves I tried after the contest tasted like raw string beans. And yes they did sting my hand but not my mouth.

Rose found a bunch of recipes for stinging nettles on the Internet and told me this one for pasta with nettles, sorrel and lemon was one of her favorites. I’m sure you are not going to find stinging nettle in the produce section of your local supermarket so learn how to identify it and find some locally. Be careful you don’t pick some poison ivy by mistake. And don’t forget to bring some gloves.

Pasta With Nettles, Sorrel and Lemon
Serves 2 to 4

Ingredients

• ¼ pound fresh stinging nettles
• 8 ounces pasta
• ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
• ¼ pound fresh ricotta cheese
• 1 lemon for zest and juice
• 1 tablespoon fresh mint, chopped
• 1 tablespoon fresh parley, chopped
• 1 tablespoon fresh chives, chopped
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 1 small handful of fresh sorrel leaves, washed and torn into bite sized pieces
• ½ cup toasted walnuts

How to Make at Home

Bring two large pots of salted water to a boil. One will be for the pasta and the other for the nettles.

When the water comes to a boil in one of the pots, “carefully” add the nettles and give them a stir. Cook for 5 minutes and transfer them to a colander with a slotted spoon. You want to leave any dirt or grit in the cooking water. Let the nettle drain.

Add the pasta to the other pot of clean water and cook until al dente.

While the pasta is cooking, press most of the water out of the nettles, transfer them to a food processor and puree. Drizzle in the olive oil and process until completely smooth. Add the ricotta, lemon zest and juice and herbs. Pulse the processor to blend all the ingredients.

Season with salt and pepper.

Remove a cup of the water the pasta is cooking in and reserve. Drain the pasta and then return it to the pot. Toss in the nettle ricotta cheese mixture and stir to combine. Add the fresh sorrel and a little of the reserved pasta water to create the desired consistency of the sauce.

Stir in the walnuts and serve.

Here’s another great dish we cooked at Blackfish for our cooking class. I was busy with my Molten Chocolate Cakes so I didn’t spend any time preparing it, but it was one of the best risottos I’ve ever tasted. Absolutely delicious. And yes, I know my photograph isn’t very good but I’m working at it.

Chef Jeff Power’s secret is to cook the corn separately from the rest of the dish and add it back to the risotto just as it finishes cooking. I’m not sure why but I’ll have to ask him.

A quick tip for removing the corn kernels is to cut each ear of corn in half so you have a flat, solid surface at the bottom to prevent the ear from slipping while cutting.

Although Arborio is the most popular rice for making risotto, it is not the only one. The top of the line Italian risotto rice and most difficult to find is Carnaroli. When I lived in Park City, Utah, my friend who owned a gourmet store turned me on to Fior di Riso, a superfino carnaroli. It has a super flavorful, large, plump grain that is incredible.

Corn Risotto
Serves 8

Ingredients:

• 6 ears of fresh corn, peeled and kernels removed
• 2 cups of Arborio rice
• 5 cups chicken stock
• 1 cup white wine
• 1 sprig fresh thyme
• 1 fresh bay leaf
• 3 tablespoons minced garlic
• 1 cup of minced onion
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• ¼ pound butter
• ½ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
• ¼ cup fresh herbs, chopped (this can be whatever is fresh and local at the time)

Cooking the Corn

Heat a saucepan over medium-high heat for a couple of minutes and then add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and 1 tablespoon of the butter. Then add the corn kernels and season with salt and pepper. Sauté the corn for 2 to 3 minutes and then remove from heat and reserve for later.

Preparing the Risotto

1) In a medium sized saucepot, bring the chicken stock to a simmer. While the stock is heating up, heat up yet another pan big enough to cook the risotto. Add the other tablespoon of olive oil and sweat the onion and garlic until translucent.

2) Sweating vegetables is the term cooks use to describe cooking vegetables with very little oil over low heat so they don’t brown. You want the vegetables tender without giving them any color. At the same time, you want the vegetables to release their liquids (flavor) into the surrounding liquids. You usually cover the pan to contain the wonderful aroma and moisture.

3) Add the Arborio rice and cook for a few minutes until opaque. Carefully deglaze the pan with white wine. I usually remove the pan from the heat to prevent a flame up. Cook until most of the wine is cooked off or absorbed into the rice.

4) Now add 1/3 of the hot chicken stock and stir continuously over medium heat. When most of the stock is absorbed into the rice, add another 1/3 of the chicken stock. Repeat until all the stock is absorbed into the rice or until it is cooked al dente.

5) Al dente means the rice or pasta is cooked but still has some bite to it. It shouldn’t be soft or mushy when over cooked and you shouldn’t break a tooth because it is undercooked. It should provide a little bit of resistance when biting into it.

6) You will know the risotto is perfectly cooked when it has a smooth, creamy texture but still has body. At this point you can finish the risotto with butter, Parmesan, fresh herbs and the sautéed corn.

7) Season with salt and pepper and serve. Chef Power used sea salt and freshly ground white pepper. You would be surprised by the amount of salt professional chefs use when cooking. Chef Power had a small bowl of sea salt that he grabbed liberal amounts from to season his dishes but in the end, I didn’t find anything we prepared too salty.

The freshly ground white pepper was incredible. It had a much different fragrance than most ground peppers I’ve tried. I will have to ask him what type he likes to cook with.

I want to introduce you to Chef Mark Vogel, culinary instructor, food writer and doctor of psychology.  He has contributed several food articles on my web site including So You Want To Be A Chef that I just recently posted.

Chef Vogel graduated from the Institute of Culinary Education in New York City and has been writing a syndicated food column “Food for Thought” for a number of periodicals and web sites. I’m hoping he may help me on occasion with my “Ask A Chef” feature answering your cooking questions more thoroughly.

Mark just told me about his new web site Food For Thought that contains all of his writings plus a bunch of Mark’s recipes. I encourage you to check it out when you have a free moment (and come back to The Reluctant Gourmet when you are finished of course).

And to really wet your appetite on what you will find at Chef Vogel’s new site, I’m posting his recipe for Pasta with Basil Cream Sauce. I think you will enjoy it. And don’t forget to read my Novice to Pro interview with Chef Vogel.

PASTA WITH BASIL-CREAM SAUCE

Ingredients:

• 12 oz. pasta
• Olive oil and/or butter as needed
• Pinch of hot pepper flakes
• 1 small-medium onion, chopped
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 14.5 oz. can chicken broth
• 1 cup light cream
• 1 medium to large batch of basil, cut en chiffonade

While the pasta is cooking heat the oil and/or butter in a pan with the hot pepper.

Add the onion, salt and pepper and cook until the onion softens.

Add the garlic and cook one more minute.

Add the chicken broth and bring to a boil.

Add the cream and barely return it to a gentle simmer.  Since it is light cream, over cooking can cause it to break.  Of course you could use heavy cream and dismiss that anxiety.

Add the basil and additional salt and pepper if needed.

Add the pasta, stir to incorporate it into the sauce and serve.