Wildcrafted Rosemary from France: a recipe, a remembrance

I love my students. They never stop to inspire me, and seeing their enthusiasm fills my heart with joy and hope. And sometimes they even bring herbal gifts. Some weeks ago, one of my students came with bags full of rosemary he harvested in France.

I just happened to have recently developed a closer relationship (*) with rosemary. Moving into my new house, it was the first herb that I planted in the garden. I love to just pass by and rub it to enjoy the scent. I love the simplicity of rosemary tea, bursting with flavour and stories. I love how in winter, when everything else in the garden is fast asleep, rosemary plants looks like miniature Christmas trees. But not only that.

(*) By the way, if you are interested in deepening your relationship with rosemary (and other plants), I strongly recommend working with Darcey Blue of Shamana Flora. She has some great stuff on rosemary.

I've used rosemary on many of my foraging projects, which may surprise some of you, as it is not a native local here in Belgium. Nevertheless, it thrives in urban micro climates, where it is often planted and later abandoned, becoming a long time expatriate. On a foraging trip in Amsterdam, we found it in huge amounts, more than we could ever use. Rosemary makes a great kitchen herb, not only flavour wise, but also because it is highly antibacterial, which makes food preserve for a longer time. Interesting when you're on the road without refrigerator. Besides that, it's a plant that aids digestion. And that makes me love rosemary. But not only that.

It acts as a stimulant for the blood circulation. It will make you feel warm and is loved in massage oil by sportsmen to warm up their muscles. It often gives relief to people with rheumatic complaints.

Hungary water, an alcohol-based rosemary extract, was even the first perfume in Europe. It remained popular for many centuries. And because its main ingredient was rosemary, it wasn't just used as a fancy scent. It is often referred to as a life saver of the sickly Queen in those times. And not only her.

Rosemary makes you awake and it stimulates the memory, and don't we all need a reminder sometimes? I love rosemary for that. But not only that.

I love her because she is Ros Marinus: Dew of the Sea. The salt, the wind, the sun. Spending an afternoon with rosemary, I felt as if I had been at the sea. My nostrils were filled with that salty aroma only the ocean can give. Maybe that's a remembrance too: the salty fluids where we float in before we are born, the sea where all life came from. The salty water where tears are made of.

So I wanted to pour that into a drink. I experimented a little bit, and found that this recipe really brings out the salty flavour.

Rosemary tisane

Rosemary and lemon are an exquisite flavour combination. I love to cook with preserved lemons and rosemary, I sometimes steep a sprig of rosemary in home made lemonade, and another favourite recipe is this rosemary tea/tisane.  I love how it lifts me up on days when there is a lot of work waiting to be done. And how it warms me on chilly spring mornings.

• zest of 1 lemon
• 3 to 5 black peppercorns, crushed
• a sprig of rosemary, crushed
  
• 1 cup hot water
• lemon juice to taste
  
  Combine lemon zest, pepper, rosemary in a cup. Pour over hot water. Let steep for 10 minutes. Add lemon juice to taste and drink. Now close your eyes.
  
  Do you hear the seagulls?

There’s rosemary and rue. These keep
Seeming and savor all the winter long.
Grace and remembrance be to you.
- William Shakespeare (Winter’s Tale)