Sorrel - Food for Free

Up until recently, my knowledge on wild and foraged food has been virtually non-existent. College has stirred my interest in this subject and I have found myself more interested in my surroundings and the wild food I can find in the fields, the ditches and down the little country lanes nearby where I live.

There are many good books on the subject but this is the one I have mostly been using, It's called The Hedgegrow Handbook by Adele Nozedar.

Sorrel is one of the wild greens that can be found just about all year round. It is one of the most widely available wild plants, so it's perfect for foraging. You'll find it on grassland, along banks, dunes and cliffs, especially in iron-rich soil. It looks a bit like spinach - you'll recognise it by its pointy leaves on stems that sprout from the base of the plant. Sorrel is a diuretic, an antiseptic and can cool fevers. Years ago, people used wild sorrel as a substitute for apples in turnovers, using lots of brown sugar.

The following recipe is for an Italian Sorrel Flan "Crostata di Acetosella".

For the pastry:

• 200g plain flour - plus extra for dusting
• 120g butter, chilled and diced
• 1 egg yolk
• 2-3 tbsbp chilled water (you might need extra for dusting)

For the filling:

•  2 large eggs + 2 egg yolks
• 50g sorrel, finely shredded
• 150ml cream
• 100g creme fraiche
• pinch of nutmeg
• 100g of Fontina cheese, grated
• salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Sieve the flour into a mixing bowl. Add the butter and rub it into the flour until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs.
2. Add the egg yolk and the water and mix to form a dough. Wrap the dough in cling film and allow to rest in the fridge for 30 minutes.
3. While the dough is resting, preheat the oven to 180 degrees and butter a 20cm flan tin with a removable base.
4. Roll out the pastry on a floured surface until it's slightly larger than the tin. Line the tin with the pastry and trim the edges. Place a circle of baking paper over the pastry and fill with baking beans. Transfer to the oven and bake for 8 minutes. Remove the beans and paper and return to the oven for a further 5 minutes.
5. To make the filling, place all the ingredients except the cheese into a large bow and mix gently.
6. Pour the filling into the pastry case and sprinkle the Fontina cheese on top. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until the filling is set.