Old Style vs the USDA head-to-head challenge...

oo cinnamon bread looks yummy as does the site GSS! Makes me want to go & have a dig at the allotment but its looking to rain so prob wont today...knew I should have gone yesterday plus I have a jam & marmalade order to create! (strawb jam & lemon, orange & ginger marmalade). While its great that both are in demand (one woman begged for the strawb jam, saying she was addicted & had run out & needed more, despite me saying strawbs are still expensive!) but means I have to labour over a hot stove!!
Dont worry I know you didnt steal from mine its gated & just one look at my weeds is enough to put anyone off!! I was in danger f an eviction notice recently cos theres so many weeds!! Must pull my finger out, socks up or should it be pull my wellies on?!! Its fab as there are now resident frogs (tadpoles in the pond) and the fruit bushes are looking good despite the weeds!!

Hi guys, been researching nettles after Weezl's inspiration yesterday and they can be picked all year round as long as you use the young leaves but are most tender in Spring.

Here's a recipe I found for Nettle Gnocchi:

NETTLE GNOCCHI WITH BLUE CHEESE SAUCE Serves 6-8
Nettles have a wonderful smell and a sweet, delicate taste that is complemented by the salty blue cheese.
We chose our favourite blue cheese for this sauce, but any cheese will do.
If you are feeding it to children, sell it as "green mac and cheese", substituting a Cheddar cheese sauce for the blue cheese.Alternatively, you could eat the gnocchi with a tomato-based sauce.
Make sure you use enough flour to stop the gnocchi sticking, otherwise your hands will end up looking like those of Fungus the Bogeyman.
Don't be precious about how the dumplings look: half the fun is playing with the dough balls and getting messy.
1lb/450g nettles (about one full supermarket bag, blanched, drained and chopped)
3lb/1.3kg peeled potatoes
2 eggs
½ tsp grated nutmeg
Salt and pepper
1½-2 cups flour
knob of butter
Cook the potatoes in boiling water until tender. Drain well then mash thoroughly, until as smooth as possible.
Combine the warm mashed potatoes with the eggs, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Add the nettle mixture. Lightly mix together.
Add the flour until the dough comes together and shape into a big ball that is barely sticky on the outside.
On a floured surface, pick off inch-diameter balls and roll them into small grub-shaped lengths and pinch in the middle with a fork.
Keep on a floured surface until all the gnocchi are made.
When ready to serve, cook the dumplings in boiling salted water until they rise to the surface.
Strain and toss with butter.
For the sauce:
7oz/200g Cashel Blue cheese
1-2fl oz/30-55ml of milk
Melt the cheese in a pan and mix in the milk until the consistency is of white sauce.

I'm not sure of costings (eggs and cheese!) but I'm sure between us we could frugalise it

Some health benefits of the humble weed:

Cooked nettles provide a great detox and are high in vitamins A and C, which help the absorption of iron.Dried nettle leaves can be stored and used, when needed, to make tonic tea ... try nettle and mint.
Nettle plants are also said to cure arthritis and rheumatism. After a day down the pit, hardy Scots miners would relieve their aching joints by thrashing them with nettles.

As soon as The Cat Man has been this lunchtime, I'm off out on a nettle hunt of my own :j

I found selfsufficientish yesterday which is cool as I'm local to them too! Will definitely be reading more. In Search of Me, your jam sounds fab! And I definitely second Cerwiden's blog proposal Weezl, and would link it fromm my own blog when I ever get round to setting it up!

Yes, the canal's quite easy to get to but I can also walk out of my house and be in South Stoke in 15 mins, with LOADS of nettles along the way :T Beautiful view and free food; does it get any better?:D (Apologies for the negative thumb icon, I definitely didn't click that! Removed now)