Nettle Butter

Ingredients

• 2 bunches (3 firmly packed cups) nettles
• 250 g butter
• 1 teaspoon chopped French tarragon leaves (optional)
• 1/4 strained lemon juice
• salt to taste
• freshly ground white pepper to taste

Method

Wearing rubber gloves to avoid stings, pick the leaves off the nettles and wash well. Melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in a small saucepan, add nettles and cook for 1 minute, until thoroughly wilted (the sting disappears from the nettles once they are cooked). Squeeze nettles well to remove excess liquid, then chop very finely. You should end up with about 6 tablespoons of nettles.

Heat remaining butter in a frying pan and cook until it just starts to turn brown - watch it closely so that it doesn't foam over the sides of the pan and catch fire. Add nettles and allow to sizzle for a minute, taking care not to burn them. Add tarragon (if using) and lemon juice. Bring to the boil then remove from heat and add salt and pepper.