May 22nd
2006
Ever tried sweet woodruff? It just recently found its way into our apartment again, immediately permeating our kitchen and senses with its rich fragrance, a scent somewhere between marzipan, almonds and amaretto. I got a bundle of already wilted woodruff (much more intense) and a cute looking fresh plant (in some weird way reminding me of hemp), just to see how they differ in taste. And the difference in fact is HUGE. In comparison to the dried woodruff, the plant hardly smells at all. However, even only after 2 hours of removing one or two branches to let them dry, they miraculously become super fragrant.
When Oliver walked in the door, he directly headed to the kitchen assuming that it would be the source of the intense scent. "WOW, that smells fantastic!!" So when I told him what it was, he was completely baffled - he never liked woodruff. It was probably a 70ies and 80ies thing to flavor jell-o and puddings, even ice cream. I didn't like it either back then, but the plant's actual taste is so different from those -presumably- artificial flavors!
Woodruff is said to have mind-altering properties if consumed in too large quantities. What's "too large" again?? While that may sound like a fun thing to find out, very high doses can also cause more severe discomfort. I dare to say that the small bunch we used to infuse the panna cotta with is far, very far from even being remotely dangerous. But wait, where do all the colors and the music come from all of a sudden...
Finally, after months devoid of good strawberries the ones used in this recipe easily qualified for an A+, measured not only by their deep red looks but even more importantly by their pronounced taste, which perfectly complemented the mild woodruff taste of the yogurt-cream. Sooo good. This recipe was an instant favorite for Oliver and although at some point late last year he felt like he was being drowned in panna cotta (and thus asked me to not make one for a long time) he's so into this dessert again. Thank god ;)
Heat the cream, add the sugar and a lengthwise sliced vanilla bean (and the scraped out vanilla seeds). Let it simmer for about 10 minutes and stir every now and then. Remove from the heat.
2 Infuse the mix with the woodruff for about 30 minutes (just dip the leaves, don't let the stalks get in touch with the cream as they might turn it bitter), then remove vanilla pod and woodruff. Pour the cream trough a fine mesh sieve. Add the Greek yogurt and blend well.
Meanwhile soak the sheets of gelatin in cold water (for about 10 min). Take the sheets out, don't squeeze (as you need some water) and put them in a small pot. Heat carefully (maybe add another 1 or 2 tablespoons of water) and stir until completely dissolved. Add it to the cream/yogurt mixture and stir thoroughly until fully combined. (The original magazine recipe suggested the double amount of yoghurt, but I tried to avoid a too tangy result. It further suggested to use artificial coloring to turn the whole thing green - why would I want to do that?)
Chill for at least 5 hours, better over night.
To unmold the panna cotta, briefly dip the form in hot water and carefully flip it over on a plate. Decorate either with strawberry puree, fresh strawberries - or both.
Tip: Unmolding is not very easy, because I only used little gelatin with this recipe. If you want to be on the safe side, feel free to add another 1/2 sheet of gelatin or serve in pretty glasses.
Woodruff Panna Cotta
Recipe source: inspired by Living at Home 05/2003, p.88
Prep time: about 40min., chilling: at least 5 hours, better over night
.
Ingredients (serves 4):
400 ml heavy cream
50g sugar
1/2 vanilla pod, split lengthways, seeds scraped out
1 bunch of woodruff, wilted
150g Greek yogurt
2 sheets gelatine
2 tbsp water
150g fresh strawberries
additional strawberries for decoration
what an interesting herb/plant. I've never heard of it. Thanks for sharing!
Nicky, I have been gone for most of the last couple of months, but just finally decided to get caught up on the blogs I really love and I have to say I have been NUTS to miss yours all this time. I LOVE this post -- Woodruff? I never would have imagined that it was an herb or ingredient for food. How cool!!! Woodruff sometimes grows invasively here in gardens, and I occasionally pull it up in fits trying to keep it from taking over. Now I know what I can do with it thanks to you! I am most definitely going to try this recipe. Thanks for the beautiful accompanying photos and the clear recipe. I'll try to remember to tell you how it turns out for me, once I try it. thank you thank you!
Maureen
Your panna cotta looks great, and the Jell-o mould too! Never heard of woodruff...even though I grew up in de 70-80's...
Mmm ! Amazing like always...
So ... hmmm .. .you mean the stuff I've got piles off as groundcover in a couple of shade gardens???
What a lovely looking dessert. I had never heard of panna cotta and now want to try one for my family. Your's looks delicious!
I love your obsession with panna cotta. As soon as I work up my nerve I'm going to try one. :)
ok, you guys win the prize was the wackiest ingredient in a recipe...although I'm still waiting to see the recipe that uses that stainless-steel chocolate-like bar, in your header.
Is V-A-L-R a secret German code for something?
; )
I LOVE woodruff and have grown it for years..I've never cooked much with it, just love the fragrance. However, I am a big fan of May wine, served very cold, as an aperitif. You can make it yourself by adding woodruff to a sweet riesling or other German wine! Thanks for the yummy sounding recipe, can't wait to give it a try!
[...] I ordered some. I would like to state for the record that I deeply love the internet. It told me about something that piqued my interest and gave me a method to purchase it. Now I am using the internet to tell you about it. And, if all goes according to plan, later this summer I’ll publish the pictures I plan to make Denny take of a delicious woodruff crème brulée. Thanks to Delicious Days for bringing it to my attention. [...]
Sieht hübsch aus!
Unser Bioprof meinte letztes Mal bei den Bestimmungsübungen was von "nicht mehr als 5 Pflanzen pro Liter Bowle" ;-), sonst wird der Cumaringehalt wohl zu hoch.
Never heard of woodruff before, how exciting! Your link suggested it gets its scent from coumarin--which is the same flavour compound that gives tonka beans their vanilla-y quality--is it reminiscent?
hey :)
i love your site so much
pictures are so pretty
makes me want to cook
and to go to germany
does someone know what is woodruff in french?
Wow, I have never heard of Woodruff, sounds delicious though. Anyhting marzipan flavored! What a beautiful panna cotta. Woodruff reminds me of poppy seeds!
I was scratching my head over this strange-sounding plant when I realized that I've had it numerous times under its German nom de plume, Waldmeister. I remember a particularly tasty scoop of Waldmeister gelato, in fact, so I have no doubt that it performs equally well in panna cotta!
Woodruff is said to have mind-altering properties if consumed in too large quantities.
I never heard that woodruff is mind-altering (never experienced it, either, although I have woodruff in my garden and use it often). But the cumarine in it - the stuff which produces the smell - is slightly toxic. Cumarine is used in blood-thinning drugs (given to patients with thrombosis or similar diseases), as well as for poisoning rats. It can cause cardiovascular problems and harm the liver. But no worries: woodruff contains only very little quantities of cumarine - you would have to graze in a woodruff field for days to get the booster dose which could harm you. Nonetheless, some people respond more to the drug than others. The delicious Maibowle, which contains woodruff, can cause headaches - not (only) because of the alcohol, but due to the cumarine.
What’s “too large” again??
3 gr of dried plant per ltr of Maibowle is said to be the headache-safe amount. I have no experience with woodruff-panna cotta, though. (The recipe sounds delicous, by the way. Verrry delicious.)
That the smell is stronger in the dried plant is typical. The cumarine only just develops (out of another substance which name I forgot) if the leaves dry.
Woodruff is a relative of the coffee plant, funny, isn't it?
@ Marie-Claude: "aspérule odorante" ou "reine des bois" !
The raspberry rhubarb trick was beautiful. I made a simple sauce. Simple is really the operative word here as my kitchen is severely limited at the moment. It was realy beautiful. Now, woodruff, that's a new one on me. It's on my radar to seek it out. Looks beautiful.
Now I feel bad. I'm still picking up courage to try your buttermilk panna cotta, and now you've provided yet another impressive panna cotta recipe! It's hard to keep up with you two!
Didn't know you can use woodruff for cooking, although I've seen the plant back home before. Thanks for the tip!
(and your jello-mould is gorgeous!)
I love that jello mold! So jealous
Thanks for sharing this unusual ingredient - the recipes sounds delicious! I particularly love the last shot where the strawberry looks so translucent and glowing!
I have OODLES of sweet woodruff in my herb garden because is looks so pretty tucked in between things. It's quite easy to grow and I've transplanted it to other spots because it was beginning to overtake the blueberries. I'm so excited to have something to do with it other than keep transplanting it around! If anyone lives in Seattle and wants woodruff, let me know :)
These are gorgeous. I've never even heard of Woodruff before, but I'll keep an eye out for it from now on.
i've never tasted woodruf before, it sure is interesting! i love the jello mold too. thanks for letting me enjoy your food pictures :)
Es hat etwas gedauert bis ich realisiert habe, dass Woodruff Waldmeister ist. Bisher kannte ich nur den grünen Wackelpudding und natürlich die Eiscreme, aber nicht das Kraut an sich, was sich unbedingt bald ändern muss! Habt ihr das Kraut auf dem Viktualienmarkt bekommen? An dieser Stelle auch mal Danke für all die tollen Ideen!
If you'd like to taste Maibowle, try that one, sounds quite original. and - for the day after - ever tried a nice Kaiserschmarrn?
Thank you so much for sharing that recipe. That is sooo much easier to follow than the one I have now, which seems to require much more work than I am capable of! Can't wait to find out more yummy recipes.
Lecker und es passt immer alles, Bild, Rezept, toll. Ich finde auch die Förmchen und Gläser die Ihr verwendet super. Macht einfach so weiter es ist eine Augenweide bei euch reinzuschauen. Danke
Hi Maureen, Thank you for the kind feedback - if you do try it with your own grown woodruff, I'd very interested in how it turned out and how you liked it!
Mira, The possibilities of making different panna cotta are basically endless. With that said, sometimes when I make it for guests I know aren't overly adventurous I'll revert back to less daring ingredients.
David, No secret code. It's what was left from the blue Valhrona chocolate bar ;)
Hi Jenny, I've never made May wine (Maibowle) myself, but huslige just posted a link to a recipe and we still have some woodruff left...
Hi Kathi, Whew, da waren wir dann doch noch ein wenig entfernt von...
Hello tejal, Since I'm not a scientist, I'm not sure if that is a true statement - have you checked with wikipedia?
Ludmilla, Thanks for the additional info on woodruff! I'm not sure we'll ever be in a situation to report back on the mind-altering feature, but better safe than "sorry" :)
Hallo Miriam, Ja, das Bündel Waldmeister habe ich von unserem Lieblingstand am Viktualiemarkt: Rottler.
Hi huslige, Thanks for the link to the Maibowle (may wine) recipe. Concerning Kaiserschmarrn, no not only "nice", but the perfect ones (at least for us) here and here ;))
Hi. I love your site and always come here. Sometimes, just to look at your beautiful pictures. I plan to try one of your recipes soon and will post pictures if I can :)
Asperula odorata = Woodruff = Aspérule odorante
Nous réalisons un apéritif à base de (vin blanc "Rivaner" + Asperule + orange + morceau de sucre + porto) appelé MAITRANK = boisson du mois de Mai
Vous connaissiez cette boisson ???
Amicalement,
i live here in Munich as well. Where did you buy your Woodruff? i've never heard of it, but i have a boyfriend who LOVES marzipan, so it certainly sounds worth investigating!
One can EAT woodruff?? (Actually before reading this I had heard that it is used in cookery in Germany - didn't remember that it was used to flavour riesling though) We have plenty of it growing in the garden. It has just finished flowering. And isn't it gorgeous?!
We dry bits of it to hang in the closets. But we still haven't ventured to use it in the kitchen. Thanks for posting your recipe for panna cotta.
-Elizabeth
So that's the English term! In Dutch, woodruff is 'Onze Lieve Vrouwe Bedstro' (referring to the haybed of Maria). I can't live without it and will be packing two plants in my suitcase when I go down to Occitania next week. It smells GREAT and is the perfect compliment to strawberries, indeed.
Tried your panna cotta recipe over the weekend, it was fantastic, most of our guest never had eaten something containing woodruff before! Thank you!!!
Woodruff..the magic ingredient of May Wine. My college days in the late 60's were heavily infused with May Wine. It came in a tall slender pale green pottery bottle. Everyone used the bottles for vases and candle holders. I can't think of one bad thing about May Wine, certainly no headaches. It was so light and delicate that we drank it in little sips to savor it's flavor. Thanks for the memory.
woodruff is wald meister?
the pagan green man....complement to the mother nature
strawberries marinated in woodruff till it turns into clear red juice is fantastic served as a dessert soup.kaltschale
sweet
woodruff has invaded my Ivy Patch and decimated the Ivy. How do I get rid of it? I prefer the Ivy.
kk
I am from Germany now living in Middle Tenneessee. Would like to find out where I could purchase either seeds or plants. I know our local nurseries do not have them.
WE were in Germany and were introduced to woodruff. Everyone recognized the flavor but could not put another name more common to US. Does it grow in the US and if so, where?
I have eaten this in candies and sodas most of my life... I never had any side effects. Germans use it a lot. Which is were I spent my childhood. But we bought it that way so i am looking for recipes to use it since we recently found some in the yard! (I live in Kentucky) Mixup at the greenhouse i guess. :)
first time i've heard of woodruff. haven't seen nor tasted that here in Iloilo, Philippines.
At least I get to enjoy your soothing photos.
Woodruff is definitely something new to me...but the only thing that I'm focusing on at this moment is "mind-altering properties"... ;-P
I LOVE that jello mold form!