5 recipes for grilling from nature

Salzburg barbecue enjoyment with wild herbs from forest, meadow and wayside

August is once again a really nice time to enjoy the summer. The children are on vacation and also for the adults the everyday wheel turns now usually a little slower. Warm temperatures lure you into nature and to the bathing lakes. On warm evenings, people like to get together with family and friends under the open sky and let the day end in a relaxed atmosphere.

In addition to a visit to the guest gardens at Pucher Gastro, a "barbecue" is now especially back in high demand. That"s why I"ve come up with a few ideas for "wild barbecue enjoyment" in this article and brought you five simple recipe ideas to follow. Wild of course, because with me it somehow always revolves a bit around wild herbs.

Enjoy the panoramic view over the flower meadow to Puch on your walk

On the meadows in Puch & surroundings you can now still find aromatic herbs and pretty edible flowers. Wild berries are on offer at the hedges and roadsides. Of course, sun-ripened vegetables are now also in harvest season in Salzburg"s gardens. From these treasures small delicacies can be conjured, which make the grill evening correctly multicolored, underline the summer and completely besides not only for good taste, but also for a healthier grill benefit provide.

In the flower meadow you can find some edible beauties for the "feast for the eyes".

Of course, it is also fun to collect herbs and wild fruits together, to pick edible blossoms here and there during a walk or a tour of the garden, to dry them and in this way to create a wonderfully fragrant, edible potpourri for various occasions and thus to preserve the summer a little.

Wild herbs for barbecue enjoyment

Mugwort, Dost, Yarrow & Quendel: Wild seasoning & helpers for fat digestion

These four herbs are especially interesting for grilling. They contain digestive essential oils and bitter substances, and are aromatic to boot. Mugwort, for example, is traditionally used to season roast goose because it promotes fat digestion. This property, of course, also benefits us when we grill. And so we can integrate the spices into marinades, breads, spreads, drinks or herbal salts to benefit from their good properties.

Bitters...

... are, by the way, secondary plant constituents. They are a heterogeneous group of substances characterized by their bitter taste. For the plants, bitter substances serve in particular as protection against feeding.

... are useful for us humans when eating fatty foods, as they stimulate appetite and salivation. In fact, they stimulate the bitter receptors on our tongue. This initiates the production of saliva and digestive secretions. Our body is now well prepared for food. The herbs make fatty food more digestible. Perfect, therefore, for the "barbecue dinner"!

Where are these wild herbs found?

Mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris)
... grows on nutrient-rich soils and is often found in ruderal meadows, on rubble and gravel. For example, we often encounter it along the Tauern Cycle Path on the Salzach River. Mugwort can be cultivated in the garden. It is a composite plant.

Dost (Origanum vulgare)
... likes to grow on calcareous grounds. We can find it in bushes, hedges, roadsides and forest edges. It can also be cultivated well in the garden. It is a labiate plant.

Yarrow (Achillea millefolium)
... grows on meadows, pastures and also on dry slopes and roadsides. The leaves are very finely pinnate and resemble an eyebrow. Yarrow is therefore also called the "eyebrow of Venus". It can be cultivated in the garden. Organic seeds are even now available for purchase in supermarkets or can be collected by yourself. It is a composite, but still sometimes confused with umbelliferous, among which there are very poisonous.

Quendel (Thymus pulegioides)
... grows in sunny, warm and stony places and on dry grasslands. In Puch there are a few meadows where quender grows. However, it is very easy to find and collect it during mountain hikes or to cultivate it in the garden. It is a labiates.

Of all the above herbs, both the flowers and the leaves can be used. Please use only herbs that are 100 percent sure to recognize! One can take identification books and herbalists to the help here.

TIP: In my book "Ganz schön wild" I have summarized many basics for collecting and using herbs. The basic part is rounded off by three recipe parts with more than 120 ideas for home medicine, beauty and enjoyment. In addition, I share my experiences and knowledge about wild herbs in my Wilde Möhre Blog.

Colorful blossoms: A real feast for the eyes

Colorful blossoms may be missing with us in the meantime with hardly a meal. The eye eats with us, as is well known, and the blossoms make your mouth water just by looking at them. My credo is that food should not only be tasty, but also visually appealing. For me, this means table culture and it promotes the joy of conscious eating for everyone at the table. That can only be healthy! And of course, secondary ingredients in the flowers, such as essential oils, also contribute to health. So what more could you want?

Summer in a jar

Edible flowers can be used fresh or dried. To make sure I always have some on hand, I collect a few blossoms here and there throughout the summer, dry them on a drying rack, and fill them into storage jars as they come. The result is wonderfully colorful and fragrant mixtures. I help myself both in the garden and in the wild nature. The blossoms are sprinkled on the edge of the plate or over food. They can also be incorporated into spreads, such as my "Blossom Grill Butter" (see below for recipes).

Zu den essbaren Gartenblumen zählen u.a.:

Goldmelisse | Kapuzinerkresse | Kamille |  Kornblume | Kosmea (Schmuckkörbchen) | Ringelblume | Rose | Malve, Eibisch | Sonnenblume | Blüten diverser Gewürzpflanzen, z.B. Fenchel, Basilikum, Salbei, Thymian, Oregano

Unter den Wildblumen finden wir u.a. folgende essbare Blüten:

Gänseblümchen |  Goldnessel | Taubnessel | Glockenblume | Flockenblume | Hornkleeblüten in Maßen | Rotklee, Weißklee | Salbei, Dost, Quendel |
Weidenröschen | Wildrosen | Witwenblume

Wild berries: Summery drinks & fruity ketchup with a difference

Currently, forest edges, roadsides and hedges are full of ripe blackberries. In Puch, they can often be seen hanging luxuriantly over garden fences, but here you should first ask politely before helping yourself. Already when picking, a fragrant aroma often rises to one"s nose, almost as if perfumed, and when cooking it comes out even more. In addition to the good smell, blackberries are very tasty and can be processed into numerous delicacies, not only jam, which is very obvious.

What makes blackberries healthy?

Blackberry fruit is rich in vitamin C, but also contains B vitamins and vitamin E. In addition, there are minerals such as calcium, potassium, magnesium and iron, as well as anthocyanins, which are responsible for the dark color of the berries and are considered free radical scavengers. Overall, the fruits strengthen our organism, support metabolism and protect our cells.

Botanical "blackberry excursion": Is the blackberry really a berry? What do you think?

There are countless different species of blackberries. In Europe alone, more than 2,000 have been described. Botanically speaking, by the way, it is not a berry, but a so-called "aggregate fruit". The fruit, which we colloquially refer to as a "berry", is composed of many small spherical individual fruits and sits on a cone-shaped fruit base. When the fruit can be easily detached from the base, it is ripe. The fruit segments are formed from the individual carpels of the flower, and each fruit segment also contains a tiny stone and, inside it, the seed. In terms of structure, the individual fruits can be compared to a cherry, for example, which botanically belongs to the drupe family. Raspberries, by the way, are also aggregate stone fruits, and strawberries, for example, are so-called "aggregate nut fruits", here tiny nutlets sit on a fleshy, high-arched flower base. I find these things insanely exciting, do you? For example, who would have believed that botanically speaking, a cucumber is also a berry? Actually, it"s an armored berry, because of the hard outer skin!

Blackberry decoration for summer parties

Blackberries can also be used to make beautiful wreaths and pretty table decorations. I also like to put the branches in wild bouquets. Here in the picture blackberry decoration with candle. For the decoration I use branches that contain mainly green and reddish unripe blackberries.

Barbecue: 5 simple recipes from wild herbs, flowers & blackberries

1. summer blackberry lemonade & blackberry gin.

Making blackberry syrup as a base for summer drinks. From 500 g of blackberries you get about 400 ml of syrup and 100 g of fruit puree for the ketchup (see point 2).

Ingredients:

500 g blackberries | 125 ml water | juice ½ half lemon | 400 g sugar | 1/3 scraped vanilla bean | 2 allspice seeds | 1 clove | 1 pinch of salt

Preparation:

• In a saucepan, pour water over blackberries and bring to a boil.
• Add spices and sugar.
• Dissolve the sugar while stirring and simmer covered for ten minutes.
• Finally, stir in the lemon juice.
• Strain through a sieve or filter and pour into a well-cleaned bottle.
• Put the pomace for the ketchup through the whisking machine and turn it into mush.

Usage:

Splash the syrup over ice with water or pour over gin. For the gin, pour crushed ice into a glass, add 4 cl gin, 2.5 cl blackberry syrup and 1.5 cl lemon juice, stir gently and top again with some crushed ice. Both the lemonade and the gin taste good with a fresh sprig of rosemary. This one is decorative to boot.

2. fruity tomato blackberry ketchup

The delicious ketchup is something different and comes due to the fruit sweetness completely without household sugar. An advantage over store-bought ketchup. In addition, the combination of tomato and blackberry is really something special. The ketchup goes well with grilled vegetables, meat or potato wedges.

Ingredients ketchup:

500 g sun-ripened tomatoes | 250 g tomato passata | 1 small apple, 1 small nectarine or plum | 1 tbsp olive oil | 1 red onion | 1 clove of garlic | 1-2 tbsp honey | 3 allspice seeds | 3 juniper berries | 1 tsp mustard seeds | 1 clove | 1 bay leaf | A few sprigs of thistle, rosemary, quender | 50 ml wine vinegar | 1 teeny pinch of cinnamon | 100 g blackberry puree | salt and pepper to taste |

Makes about a 290 ml jar full. For more than 4 people it is best to make double the amount.

Preparation:

• Cut tomatoes, onions, garlic and apple/nectarine into cubes.
• Heat oil in a pan and saute the above ingredients. Pour honey on top and stir until slightly caramelized.
• Add spices and saute for a few minutes.
• Now add tomatoes, tomato passata, vinegar and herb sprigs and simmer on low heat for about 3 minutes.
• Pass through the whisk, stir in blackberry puree and reduce to low heat while stirring until the ketchup has the desired consistency. Finally, season with a little cinnamon, but salt and pepper to taste.

3. flower grill butter

The butter is easy to prepare and can be stored in the freezer. It is thawed in no time. The butter goes well with bread and baguette. You can also melt the butter wonderfully over hot grilled food.

Ingredients:

250 g lukewarm, soft butter | 1 handful of herbs, for example chives, dill, parsley, wild herbs: thistle, thyme, mugwort | 1 handful of edible flowers fresh or dried | 1-2 cloves of garlic | Finely grated zest of ½ lemon | ½ tsp salt

Preparation:

• Finely chop herbs and flowers
• Finely chop garlic and squeeze a little.
• Add herbs, flowers, garlic, lemon zest and salt to butter and mix evenly.
• Spread the butter into silicone molds and place in the freezer to set.
• Press out of the mold and serve.

4. wild herbs garlic baguette

Ingredients for 3 baguettes:

Pre-dough: 100 g plain wheat flour type 700 | 10 g fresh yeast | 80 g water

Main dough: 10 g fresh yeast | 400 g water, a little more if necessary | 900 g plain wheat flour type 700 | 20 g salt | 3 tablespoons dried or fresh herbs (yarrow, mugwort, thistle, thyme).

Preparation baguette:

• For the pre-dough, mix all the ingredients together and let the dough rest for 3 to 4 hours, covered, in a warm place and without drafts.
• Now prepare the main dough. Dissolve the yeast in the water, mix with the other ingredients and knead well. Finally, add the pre-dough and knead well again until a smooth dough is formed. If the dough is too dry, just add some more water until it has the desired texture. Let the dough rest again for 1 hour.
• eparate the dough into three equal parts, first rounding the dough pieces and then long-working them. Let rise for a few more minutes and cut the bread deeply and diagonally every 2 inches, but do not cut through the bottom. Spread the soft garlic butter in the slits. Brush the baguette with water and sprinkle with herbs.
• Bake in a preheated oven at 220 degrees until golden brown (about 20 to 25 minutes, shorter or longer depending on the oven) and serve hot. The sections can be broken off the baguette by hand

Garlic butter:

For the garlic butter, thoroughly mix 250 g soft butter with 1 tsp rock salt and 6-9 squeezed garlic cloves. The baguette can be prepared without garlic butter if desired. Then the incisions should not be made so deep.

5. wild herbs vegetable barbecue skewers.

The herbs can also be used wonderfully as barbecue skewers. Vegetables are previously marinated in a homemade marinade with wild herbs and then skewered on the stems of mugwort, dost and yarrow.

Ingredients Marinade:

200 ml sunflower oil | 1 handful of aromatic herbs, for example, thistle, thyme, rosemary, some mugwort | 2-3 cloves of garlic | 1 tablespoon wine vinegar | 2 tablespoons lemon juice | 1 teaspoon honey | chili flakes if desired | salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

• Finely chop herbs and garlic, mix with the remaining ingredients and season to taste. Marinate vegetables such as peppers, zucchini or onion for a few hours and then stick them onto the wild herb skewers.
• For the herb skewers, remove the leaves from the stems as much as possible, leaving only a few flowers and leaves on top. To make it easier to stick the vegetables on, the plant stems can be sharpened slightly at the bottom with a knife. It is recommended to use sturdy stems for stability.
• The skewers are cooked in the grill tray on the grill.

Summer, sun, herb time in Salzburgerland

I"m glad if I could inspire you and you got the desire to spice up your summer "barbecue dinner" with (wild) herbs and (wild) berries or to preserve a few colorful flowers in the jar.

See my ideas as suggestions and just get creative yourself. It"s so much fun to keep coming up with new ways to incorporate herbs into your existing menu.

Have fun with it, have a fine summer and grill time!

Sincerely yours Silja
alias Wilde Möhre