TRIVIA

Nasturtiums served in one of those half-desparate,
half-pathetic experiments that were made in an effort
to find a cure for scurvy in the late 1700s.

Throughout the next century,
nasturtiums were recommended for a number of ailments.

Tradition of using Nasturtiums as spicing in food traces
back to the late 18th Century.

Both the flowers and the leaves of the nasturtium plant are
hot and peppery to taste.

Leaves have often been used as a substitute
for watercress and they contain very high amounts of vitamin C.

The flowers come in brilliant colors ranging
from yellow and orange to deep red, and there are
many varieties to choose from:
the dwarf and the variegated, or the long and trailing,
perfect for hanging baskets.

Thriving in poor soil, they make a hot splash of brilliant colour
all through the summer, and if left to seed themselves they
will reappear with abandon the following year.

Flower-heads for eating should be fresh,
unblemished and unsprayed.
Do not wash them if at all possible,
as the soft and delicate petals bruise easily.

Use the flowers with a variety of summer salad leaves,
such as green and bronze lettuce, because lettuce, and frisee
or oak-leaf lettuce for interest.

The salad below can be eaten as part
of a meal or as a first course on its own.