Heart of the Garden

I picked up this plant at the West Chester Growers Market last year. I asked the farmer what it was and he said “Salad Burnet! It’s great. Tastes like cucumber.”

It’s funny when people use vegetables to sell the flavor of other vegetables. I wondered if he’d somehow mistaken the name. Salad Burnet? Why is the thing you’re suposed to DO with this thing in the NAME of this thing? And is it associated with Carol Burnett? What IS this plant? I was very confused, but I tried not to barrage him with too many questions.

Basic Stuff:

• Hardy perennial that pops up early in Spring
• Almost evergreen
• Needs about 6 hours of sun
• Average, dry soil
• Cut off flowers to keep it sending up new growth
• The second year, don’t let it get too big (will grow 18″) or it’ll get tough
• Freeze it, don’t dry it (like most chlorofilly, leafy herbs)

Culinary uses: 

• Use it kind of like parsely
• Make a compound herb butter (I just like using the word “compound butter”)
• Use in salad dressings for neat cucumber flavor
• Just throw it in salads!
• Muttle it in Pim’s Cup cocktail if you hain’t got no cukes!

Fun Salad Burnet Facts:

• Thomas Jefferson used it at Monticello to stop erosion and to feed his livestock b/c it grew so well in dry soil
• It’s in the Rosaceae family, related to roses of all things. Any relation of roses is a friend o’ mine!
• The medicinal species, sanguisorba, means “blood-drink,” b/c it was thought to stop hemorrhaging
• It’s also called “Pimpernel.” Good dog name.
• Turns out it’s not related to Carol. Burnet means brown in Olde English.

 

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References:
http://oldfashionedliving.com
http://www.celtnet.org.uk