This is a charming spring soup that can be prepared and served three different ways. It can be a rough country soup, a robust puree or a subtle and warming cream soup. Either way, it has a very unique flavor.
Blanch in boiling, salted water for one minute :
8 cups loosely packed mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris) leaves, collected early to mid-spring
Drain, rinse immediately with cold water, then squeeze free of liquid and allow to dry.
Bring to a simmer :
8 cups chicken or strong (but not roasted) vegetable stock
2 fresh bay leaves (optional)
Add :
1 1/2 tsp ground coriander seed
1 tsp ground ginger or several thin slices of fresh ginger root
freshly ground white or black pepper to taste
4 oz celery, diced
Simmer for 5 minutes, then add :
12 oz potato, peeled (or not) and diced
Simmer for 20 minutes, then add :
The prepared mugwort, finely chopped
1 tsp salt (or to taste)
Simmer for 5 minutes, then remove from heat.
The soup can be served as is. If that is your plan, you may wish to make the chopping of the celery and potato more uniform. If I am serving it like this I will keep it more rustic, like a rough country soup made quickly at the end of the working day. In fact, that is exactly what this is, a soup that takes only an hour or so in total and most of that spent simmering.
Alternatively, you can puree it. Pureeing will give you a complex bright olive green soup that is an intriguing first course for a spring meal. It’s equally great as just plain eating, but it has a mysterious flavor that might have your local foodies scratching their beards to describe. I like to think of it as a mix between parsley and sage, but not quite that… although handling the plant itself also makes me think of those two herbs.
Another option would be to puree, then add :
2 tbs butter
1/2 cup light cream
This makes for an even more elusive tasting soup, which can be garnished very nicely with bright violet flowers and bittercress pods, if you like, or forsythia blossoms and chives. A perfect soup from early to mid-spring.
How to Cook a Weed 