Winter Purslane

Winter purslane is a a nutritious, tasty green that makes a good groundcover and is winterhard. If purslane grows well in your garden it means you have healthy, fertile soil!

If sowed at the end of the summer, a first harvest can be picked before the winter sets in. If the heart of the plant is left untouched it will make new leaves and provide a second harvest in early spring before it gets too warm and sends up flowers.

In the United States, winter purslane is also known as ‘miner’s lettuce’ due to its consumption by California Gold Rush miners looking for vitamin C to prevent scurvy. It is also rich in calcium, magnesium and iron, and has high amounts of omega-3 fatty acids and protein.

Purslane is used medicinally in some cultures: to treat internal animal parasites in the Dominican Republic; for colds, sores and fevers in China; and as an astringent in India and Sudan.

Purslane can be eaten raw in salads, but it is not quite as delicate as other lettuce. It can be boiled like spinach, and has a similar taste. The stems, leaves and seeds can be used in stir-frys or stamppot, and the green seed pod can be pickled for a caper substitute.

Here are some ways to whip up a fresh and healthy batch of purslane in the dark of the winter: a cucumber and winter purslane yogurt salad, a stamppot with winter purslane, and a winter purslane soup.

http://www.thedailygreen.com/healthy-eating/recipes/cucumber-yogurt-salad-holidays-christmas
http://www.mijnreceptenboek.nl/recept/hoofdgerechten/stamppotten/stamppot-winterpostelein-16632.html
http://mareonlifeingeneral.blogspot.com/2010/10/winterpostelein-soep.html