GRAS CREPES
To make crepes:
2 cups all-purpose flour
4 large eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup water
1 teaspoon orange flavoring
¼ teaspoon mint flavoring
1 tablespoon minced fresh orange mint
¼ cup salted butter, melted
Garnish:
whipped cream
8 sprigs of rosemary
orange-peel curls
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and eggs. Gradually add milk, water, and flavorings, stirring to combine. Add the orange mint and butter; beat until smooth. Batter should be thin; if it thickens, add a few drops of milk. Heat a lightly oiled crepe pan or 7-inch frying pan over medium-high heat. Pour ¼ cup batter into the pan. Lift and tilt, using a circular motion, so that the batter coats the surface evenly. Cook the crepe for about 2 minutes, until the edges are firm and the bottom is light brown. Loosen with a spatula, turn and cook the other side. Stack, separated with cling-film or wax paper. May be frozen. Serve rolled, with orange-mint sauce, a dollop of whipped cream, and garnish of rosemary and orange-peel curls. Makes 16 crepes. (Sheila says to tell you that it’s hard to work with this recipe when it’s doubled. If you’re serving a crowd, she suggests making the batter in several batches.)
To make orange-mint sauce:
1cups sugar
cup unsalted butter
cup light corn syrup
¼ teaspoon mint flavoring
cup frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1 tablespoon minced fresh mint
In a medium nonreactive saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar, butter, corn syrup, and concentrate. Bring to a boil. Add mint and mint flavoring, reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. May be reheated to serve; may be doubled or tripled.
FEBRUARY 5
In the black seed is the medicine for every disease except death.
—ARAB PROVERB
Love-in-a-Mist
February is the month for love, and love-in-a-mist is the romantic name for Nigella , or black cumin, an old-fashioned cottage garden flower and ancient medicinal herb. Its blossom resembles the bachelor button, and hybrid varieties come in a variety of colors, some with a double ruffle of petals. Its tiny black seeds are contained in a puffy, papery striped balloon. Both the flowers and the pods are attractive additions to dried flower arrangements. For centuries, this annual has been cultivated throughout the East, the Middle East, and the Mediterranean area for its many culinary and medicinal purposes.
AS A SEASONING
Nigella ’s black seeds have a fruity fragrance, rather like anise or fennel. Spicy and piquant, they have been used as a substitute for caraway and black pepper. N. damascena tastes like nutmeg and can be used to season cookies and fruit salad. The seeds are tiny, though. You’ll need at least 3 teaspoons to flavor a large bowl of salad or a batch of cookies. Experiment for taste.
AS A MEDICINE
Nigella has been used as a digestive aid, an appetite stimulant, and a cure-all remedy. A bottle of black cumin oil was discovered in the tomb of King Tutankhamun. Queen Nefertiti used the oil to keep her skin supple and to preserve her bronze complexion. To treat insect stings, the Romans applied a paste of crushed seeds mixed with vinegar and honey. Now, Nigella is found in cough syrups, wound salves, and topical preparations. Modern research has confirmed that the oil is antimicrobial and is an effective treatment for asthma and intestinal parasites. Some researchers suggest that it may be an immune-system booster.
IN YOUR GARDEN
Nigella prefers to be sown in the ground, but you can start it indoors and transplant it outside after your last frost date. You’ll have flowers in June or July. Make successive plantings in your garden for bloom until frost. Next year, don’t bother, unless you’re planting a hybrid. These plants self-seed readily. The fresh blossoms are lovely; the dried seed pods unusual.
Read more about this ancient herb:
The Healing Power of Black Cumin , by Sylvia Luetjohann
Nigella serveth well among other sweets to put into sweet waters, bagges, and odoriferous
To make crepes:
2 cups all-purpose flour
4 large eggs
1 cup milk
1 cup water
1 teaspoon orange flavoring
¼ teaspoon mint flavoring
1 tablespoon minced fresh orange mint
¼ cup salted butter, melted
Garnish:
whipped cream
8 sprigs of rosemary
orange-peel curls
In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and eggs. Gradually add milk, water, and flavorings, stirring to combine. Add the orange mint and butter; beat until smooth. Batter should be thin; if it thickens, add a few drops of milk. Heat a lightly oiled crepe pan or 7-inch frying pan over medium-high heat. Pour ¼ cup batter into the pan. Lift and tilt, using a circular motion, so that the batter coats the surface evenly. Cook the crepe for about 2 minutes, until the edges are firm and the bottom is light brown. Loosen with a spatula, turn and cook the other side. Stack, separated with cling-film or wax paper. May be frozen. Serve rolled, with orange-mint sauce, a dollop of whipped cream, and garnish of rosemary and orange-peel curls. Makes 16 crepes. (Sheila says to tell you that it’s hard to work with this recipe when it’s doubled. If you’re serving a crowd, she suggests making the batter in several batches.)
To make orange-mint sauce:
1cups sugar
cup unsalted butter
cup light corn syrup
¼ teaspoon mint flavoring
cup frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed
1 tablespoon minced fresh mint
In a medium nonreactive saucepan over medium heat, combine sugar, butter, corn syrup, and concentrate. Bring to a boil. Add mint and mint flavoring, reduce heat and simmer 5 minutes. May be reheated to serve; may be doubled or tripled.
FEBRUARY 5
In the black seed is the medicine for every disease except death.
—ARAB PROVERB
Love-in-a-Mist
February is the month for love, and love-in-a-mist is the romantic name for Nigella , or black cumin, an old-fashioned cottage garden flower and ancient medicinal herb. Its blossom resembles the bachelor button, and hybrid varieties come in a variety of colors, some with a double ruffle of petals. Its tiny black seeds are contained in a puffy, papery striped balloon. Both the flowers and the pods are attractive additions to dried flower arrangements. For centuries, this annual has been cultivated throughout the East, the Middle East, and the Mediterranean area for its many culinary and medicinal purposes.
AS A SEASONING
Nigella ’s black seeds have a fruity fragrance, rather like anise or fennel. Spicy and piquant, they have been used as a substitute for caraway and black pepper. N. damascena tastes like nutmeg and can be used to season cookies and fruit salad. The seeds are tiny, though. You’ll need at least 3 teaspoons to flavor a large bowl of salad or a batch of cookies. Experiment for taste.
AS A MEDICINE
Nigella has been used as a digestive aid, an appetite stimulant, and a cure-all remedy. A bottle of black cumin oil was discovered in the tomb of King Tutankhamun. Queen Nefertiti used the oil to keep her skin supple and to preserve her bronze complexion. To treat insect stings, the Romans applied a paste of crushed seeds mixed with vinegar and honey. Now, Nigella is found in cough syrups, wound salves, and topical preparations. Modern research has confirmed that the oil is antimicrobial and is an effective treatment for asthma and intestinal parasites. Some researchers suggest that it may be an immune-system booster.
IN YOUR GARDEN
Nigella prefers to be sown in the ground, but you can start it indoors and transplant it outside after your last frost date. You’ll have flowers in June or July. Make successive plantings in your garden for bloom until frost. Next year, don’t bother, unless you’re planting a hybrid. These plants self-seed readily. The fresh blossoms are lovely; the dried seed pods unusual.
Read more about this ancient herb:
The Healing Power of Black Cumin , by Sylvia Luetjohann
Nigella serveth well among other sweets to put into sweet waters, bagges, and odoriferous
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