5 Herbs and 7 Wild Edibles to Nutrient Boost Your Smoothies
~ by Tera Warner
We recently provided you with a list of 19 leafy greens to rotate in your salads and smoothies, and today we want to step thing up a little by showing you some of the wild and herby ways to make your smoothies even better. Even if you picked just one of these herbs or wild edibles and committed to trying a new one every week, you’ll be adding more variety to your diet, trying out some fun and experimental flavours with your smoothies and learning to love a few lesser known powerfoods that are literally growing in your back alley!
Herbs
A note about aromatic herbs: All herbs are rather strong and aromatic. They contain more alkaloids than culinary vegetables. Therefore, they can only be consumed in small quantities.
1. Basil
Basil is an excellent herb. It’s very rich in calcium, and can be grown easily in the garden. There are many types of basil, each with its unique flavor.
USE: Basil goes well in raw soups, dressings, and salads. I haven’t tried it in smoothies because the combination doesn’t appeal to me instinctively, but perhaps there are some good fruit/basil combos!
2. Cilantro
Cilantro might be the world’s most popular herb, although in
America it is not as common. It’s very aromatic. Cilantro is also a source of iron.
USE: Cilantro goes well in raw soups, dressings, and salads.
3. Dill
Dill is feathery and it’s a delight. It’s also very rich in calcium.
USE: I add fresh dill to raw soups, dressings, salads, and even fruit salads. I’ve tried it in a smoothie and it’s actually quite good.
4. Mint
Mint is a nice herb, quite strong though, and it grows like a weed
mint; objects on white background
when you plant it. It’s also very rich in minerals.
USE: Mint is especially good in green smoothies, but because it is so strong, you may wish to only use a very small handful of leaves at a time. One of the things we absolutely adore is a drop or two of peppermint essential oil in a smoothie! Zzzzing! WOW! BANGALICIOUS!! Amazing!
5. Parsley
Parsley is one of the most common herbs. There are several varieties, although the most common is curly parsley. Parsley is very rich in iron, but it also contains a lot of oxalic acid. This means we shouldn’t have lots of parsley every day.
USE: Parsley is excellent in green smoothies, raw soups, dressings — everywhere!
Wild Greens!
It’s really a joy to discover wild greens. These plants have been around for thousands of years and have been traditionally consumed by many cultures, although ours seems to have forgotten their use. It’s not only great to know that you could survive if no other food was available, but also that wild greens are the most nutritious of all greens, and the cheapest too! Half the pleasure is in the gathering.
It’s important to learn about wild greens from an experienced person. Few wild plants are very poisonous, but many can give you a little indigestion. Once you learn to recognize the most common wild greens, you will start seeing them everywhere. Make a commitment to learn about wild greens as soon as the weather allows. The best thing would be to sign up for an herb walk, or grab any of the awesome books on wild edibles available online.
Here’s a short list of some common wild greens, but there are many, many more!
Warning:
Wild edible plants are much more powerful than the cultivated vegetables. Moderation and caution should be your guides; it’s very easy to overdose especially when you blend them in smoothies. Use them in small quantities only, and listen to your body.
1. Lamb’s Quarters
Lambs quarters is one of the most common wild edible weeds. Once
you learn to recognize it, you will see it everywhere!
In French we call it “Chou Gras” — which means “fat cabbage.” It’s more a relative to spinach than cabbage, and is actually tastier than spinach.
You can recognize lamb’s quarters by the jagged diamond-shaped leaves with powdery-feeling, white-dusted undersides.
USE: The younger, smaller leaves are best. Lambs quarters goes great in salads, green smoothies, and raw soups. It can also be steamed.
Clover
Almost everybody can recognize clover. Certain types of clover, with small, tender leaves are edible and tasty. They have a lemony taste and can be used in small quantities.
USE: Clover makes a nice addition to fruit salads. In small quantities, it also goes well in green smoothies.
2. Purslane
Purslane is one of the tastiest wild greens. It’s not always easy to find, but once you find a good location, you will come back for more! Note that purslane is also sometimes cultivated.
USE: Raw purslane is a little slimy and acidic, but goes well in salads, raw soups and green smoothies. It can also be used steamed.
3. Dandelion
Just about anybody can recognize dandelion, but the knowledge that the leaves are edible still hasn’t spread far and wide. The green leaves can be extremely bitter. When they are young and tender, they can be pleasant in small quantities.
USE: Again, moderation is to be recommended with wild dandelion. I person- ally like to add it to fruit salads and rarely use it anywhere else because of the bitterness.
4. Miner’s Lettuce
This wild edible can be found mostly in the western part of the
North American continent, where it’s plentiful. You’ll recognize the plant by its distinctive, saucer- shaped leaves, which have the appearance of being “stabbed” through the centre by their supporting stem. At its tip, the stem bears one or more small, five-petal flowers, which are usually white, but occasionally pinkish.
5. Watercress
Wild watercress is similar to cultivated watercress, so you should have no problem recognizing it. It grows near water, of course! When you harvest wild watercress, you have to make sure that the water in which it’s growing isn’t polluted.
USE: Same as for cultivated watercress
6. Sow Thistle
This is another great wild green that I found often in southern California. It grows along roadsides and streams, in meadows and other places.
USE: Sow thistle is actually quite tasty. It goes well in salads and could go in green smoothies, in moderation of course (I’ve never tried it, though!). Use wild greens in a salad, chopped with other fresh, leafy greens and in smoothies and fruit salads!