Spending time outside and connecting with nature couldn’t be more important at the moment. As many of us step out into the great outdoors for daily exercise and to help boost our mental health and immunity, we are noticing and getting to know our surroundings all the more.
Rachel from The Foraged Life shares stories of Eco-Friendly Living & Living with Nature. Read her quick guide here and try out her recipe for Dandelion and Nettle Tea in your tumbler once you’re home.
USE A GUIDE
Guides are essential for helping you properly identify a plant - keeping you safe as you forage. You’ll be amazed what you can find around where you live, even ‘weeds’ that you can bring back to the kitchen!
FORAGE WHAT YOU NEED
It’s good practice to never take more than you need or completely rid a patch of wild plants; this ensures foraging is sustainable and will mean the local birds and animals won’t lose out on what they need to sustain themselves too.
FORAGE FROM UNPOLLUTED AREAS
Road sides, which are often polluted by vehicle fumes, or public places which have been sprayed with chemicals (a telltale sign are chemical deposits on the leaves) you’ll want to avoid. You only want to put good stuff into your body.
LEAVE THE ENVIRONMENT AS YOU FOUND IT
To preserve the natural beauty and ecology of an area make sure you don’t leave rubbish or disturb the natural lay of the land as you go about your foraging missions.
GO SLOW
Foraging is a gentle pursuit. Using your guide, find out what you can expect to see at this time of year and set out with some good intentions, a slow stride and a keen eye. You won’t regret it.
Dandelion and Nettle Tea recipe
This is a great beginners forage as these two plants are familiar to most of us!
To kick start, head out in the morning in your hunt for these 'weeds,' as dandelions begin to close up in the afternoon. Gather a colander's worth of nettles (young ones are best) and dandelions, using scissors and gloves (though you can cut the bottom of the nettles without being stung if you are gentle).
Take them home and wash them in the sink, being sure to get any bugs or other bits off.
Now you'll need to pluck the dandelion petals from the head and trim the top and freshest part of the nettle from the rest of it.
Combine and steep these in hot water for ten minutes before straining and pouring in to your tumbler. You can add honey if you want to too. Enjoy!
White with Blue Rim Prep Set
€93,00
White with Blue Rim Teapot
€35,00
Extracted from: The Roasting Tin Around the World – Global One Dish Dinners by Rukmini Iyer (Square Peg) £16.99 HBK Photography by David Loftus Rukmini...
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