In the summer there's a lot of food growing in the wild which we just forget to take advantage of, or then we just don't know which things are safe to use or we just don't want to. Nettles are one of those things. They have a lot of iron in them and they taste good. The best part, they're free! Most people consider nettles a nuisance, but to me they are a resource. Here I'm presenting two recipes for nettle rolls or bread if you want or are too lazy to roll them into rolls.

When you are picking nettles it's best when they are young. But if your nettles are older, take only the last 5 - 6 pairs of leaves from the top, the new ones. Be careful, they sting. Better wear some gloves for this, or if you don't have gloves (like me), you can make it with some bags in your hands. The nettles mainly only sting at the stalks.

Take the nettle leaves, leave the hard stems. If you would happen to have picked really long nettles, I've seen yarn been made from the fiber running inside the stems. However it's not such an easy or fast project and I can't give you more info on that since I've never tried it myself. Would be interesting though.

Rinse the nettle leaves with some cold water and put them in a saucepan filled with water. Bring it to a boil and take the nettles out. They are no longer stingy. Chop the nettles small. You can either use them now or freeze them for later use.

 

Very easy nettle rolls:

- 2 dl rolled oats

- 1 dl wheat flour

- 1 dl other flour (like graham or bread flour)

- 2 tsp baking powder

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 1/2 tsp sugar or 1/4 tsp honey

- 1,5 dl milk

- 2 tbsp olive oil

- 1/2 dl boiled nettles (equal to about 2 dl of fresh ones)

(- seeds)

I made these rolls about two weeks back. I used this recipe since I didn't have any yeast at home and I was hungry. This was something quick and easy enough to make.

Mix the dry ingredients and add all the other ingredients. Mix just so that you get an even paste. Divide the dough into lumps and pat them smooth on an oven pan. You can put some seeds on top before baking if you want. Bake in 225 degrees celcius for about 15 mins.

 

Nettle and carrot rolls:

- 3/4 l liquid (for example water or milk or a mix of both)

- 50 g yeast

- 2 tsp sugar or 1 tsp honey

- 3/4 tsp salt

- 4 dl bread flour

- 2 dl rolled oats

- 1 1/2 dl boiled nettles

- 1 1/2 large carrots

(- sunflower and pumpkin seeds)

- olive oil

- wheat flour

This recipe is a modification from this recipe. I've meant to make carrot rolls for a while and also nettle rolls, so I decided to make them both at the same time. These rolls make a little longer to make than the easy nettle rolls, but I wouldn't by any means call them hard to make. Both recipes are easy.

Dilute the yeast in the hand temperature liquid. Add the sugar or honey and salt. Mix in the rolled oats and the bread flour. Add the grated carrot and chopped nettles along with the seeds. Start adding some wheat flour and oil until you get the right consistency for your dough. Let it rest maybe 15 mins in a warm place before you start shaping it into rolls. I made quite big flat ones. Let the rolls swell 15 mins more, brush some water or egg on them and sprinkle on some seeds. Bake in 200 degrees celcius for 10 - 20 mins depending on the size of your rolls.

Enjoy your freshly baked rolls. They are best right after baking, so if you want them to stay similar to that, put some of them in the freezer straight after baking and defrost when you need them. If you heat them up in the oven they will taste almost like freshly baked ones.

 

Nokkossämpylät - Porkkanasämpylät