Nasturtium Butter

Nasturtium Butter and Tiny Buns

If nasturtium plants are grown organically and not sprayed, almost the entire plant is edible, including the flowers, leaves and buds.

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The leaves have a mild peppery flavor, and the blossoms are milder still. You can incorporate the blossoms into breads, cookies, crackers, toss them into a salad, or chop the blossoms and then roll a soft cheese shaped log, or ball in the chopped flowers for a stunning and flavorful presentation.

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The beautiful round green leaves are a sharp and vibrant addition to a greens and herb salad, the larger leaves make an attractive background or base on a cheese or appetizer platter.

I like to place a small round of artisan cheese on a leaf which is just a bit larger, so there is a bright rim of green around the cheese. It is beautiful, and no worry if someone cuts into the leaf, it is entirely edible.

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Nasturtium are so easy to grow, I encourage you to plant a few seeds in the spring, they require very little care and thrive in poor soil. I love the way the trailing varieties drape over walls, containers and fences, they provide lots of bright color when loaded with blooms.
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Sometimes I whip up a little softened butter (salted, or unsalted), chop up some blossoms (as many as you like) and blend them into the butter. You can also blend in a squeeze of lemon juice, a shake of Tabasco, or very finely minced shallots if you like.

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It makes a fine spread for tea sandwiches, but this time I made some miniature

"Moomie's Buns" and served them warm alongside the butter, which I had packed into a simple French glass, placing a couple of whole blooms on the inside of the glass before adding the butter.
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click for the bun recipe: http://onceuponaplate.blogspot.com/2008/08/moomies-legendary-sandwich-buns.html

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Here's a picture of how I grow mine, in a galvanized watering trough under an old, old oak tree, they bloom best in an area that receives full to partial sun.

This picture of the trough and young nasturtium was taken at the beginning of summer right before blooming. Naturtium bloom throughout the summer, until the first frost in my area.

You can tuck them anywhere in the garden; a rock garden, or grow them in containers, nasturtiums seem to thrive on neglect, they just need water.

In my area they are annuals, so I simply plant new seeds each spring. I hope you will try growing some if you haven't. Big reward for such little effort. If you have a place to grow them, I hope you will.