Today the weather says there’s some sun due, a bit like yesterday, so perhaps a bit warmer gardening, woohoo! So I’m going to use some of the young Stinging nettle (Urtica dioica) shoots from the garden and mix them with any culinary skills I might just about have, to make a nutritious, pretty quick and tasty soup.
Taking the advice from James Wong, it’s best I pick when the sun has been on them for a bit (I’ll wait an hour after the sun has reached them). This is so they’ll have the most goodness from the sun within them and some natural sugars for flavour.
So to the recipe, yeah, like I use a recipe LOL. As I’ve no marigold rubber gloves, instead of them for protection, firstly I’ll be bloody careful and secondly use clean scissors straight into a large pan with handles. I’ll cut off the youngest nettle heads straight in and not a bowl, for the little baggers might still get my thumb. I’ve experienced it, that and being dumped off of a galloping donkey into a patch, whilst only wearing swimwear as a child! Moving swiftly on as it did, I’ll need just enough nettles to half fill the smaller pan I’m going to use to cook them in later. I have to leave some for the many butterflies we have here. Going to wash them without being too touchy-feely (obviously), but I’ll be poking them plenty during the wash, with a long handled whatever from the kitchen utensils. Getting the pan warm, I’ll splodge a little oil in and gently sizzle a chopped onion to bring out its flavour fully, then add the nettles, cook till they’ve all totally wilted and then off the heat I’ve some left over bread sauce from yesterday to add with cold water to cover. Once blitzed, I’ll add some dry chopped dill leaf and heat through thoroughly. This soup won’t be like a traditional or national dish, there’s no proper rustic British charm or posh French cuisine, no, this is me, this is my taste, this is using left overs and not wasting food. Talking of French, here’s a bit o’ practice: 
Right, on a horrific and really difficult subject, there’s this hard to think about, hard to write or read about without upsetting anyone, but the hardest and most horrific practice that has to stop is FGM. Today is International Day of Zero Tolerance of it. This is a United Nations-sponsored annual awareness day as part of the UN’s efforts to eradicate this terrifying form of cruelty and extreme discrimination against women and girls. Don’t think it doesn’t happen in your country, for this practice has been found being done worldwide and has to be stopped! All children need protecting against those that wish to interfere with them, so they can grow up to live a beautiful and natural life in whatever way they choose.
Over Soil 