from Florisbella's cookbook
"The leaves and buds of this plant provide a bitter seasoning for meat and fish"
Today I went foraging near Nobottle outskirts to replenish my stock of herbs for seasoning, and what do I find? A beautiful patch of verdant mugwort! I love the subtle flavor that this little plant grants to dishes, and I cannot believe how hobbits actually purchase it at the market when all they need to do is look around them! Truly, it grows wild and in great quantity everywhere, but to go foraging means less time spent lazying... sigh.
Returning home, I thought how to use some of the sprigs I collected, maybe something with fish? I checked in the pantry what I needed for a mugwort flavored salmon soup:
1 piece of salmon, cut in little cubes (this I did buy at the market in Long Cleeve)
a sprig of mugwort... only the leaves though
4 cups of fresh water from the well at home
1/2 cup of milk
a bit of salt that I bought from some merchant. Sadly salt can't be foraged.
So I grabbed a pot, filled it with both water and milk and brought it to a boil. Then I added salmon and mugwort. Keep it boiling, keep it boiling... until the liquid comes back to a rolling boil, then I lowered the heat, otherwise I was going to boil as well!
It didn't look too appetizing at first, with all the foam on the surface so I skimmed it off. Much better! I let it cook for another five minutes, then seasoned it with the salt.
°°°
Why is it that when one searches for their best soup bowl, all one finds is the old and cracked ones? After finding said bowl in the back of my cupboard, I poured myself a generous amount. Unfortunately it was not steaming much, that is my fault for losing time with the bowl... but it tasted wonderful still! Oh dear, the sweetness of the milk and the salmon and the note of bitter from the mugwort go SO well together! I shall definitely make more for dinner, and as a before bed treat.
(image lotro wiki)
