Champignon – Larch blossom salad

7 oz.  fresh champignons
2-3 Tbsp. Himalayan balsam sprouts, or fresh scent violet leaves
3 -4 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 EL Apple cider vinegar
Mountainsalt, freshly ground pepper
Larchblossoms
6 oz.  Feta sheep or goat cheese
1Tbsp. golden linseed

Clean the mushrooms with a dry towel, and cut them in very thin sclices. A very easy way to do so is using a gourmet slicer .

Wash the himalayan balsam sprouts, and puree them together with the olive oil and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Cut the feta into slices, as thin as possible, and arrange them with the champignons on a plate.
Drip with the fresh herb oil, and serve sprinkled with larch blossoms and linseed.

Who likes it hot, can use chilli flakes. To be served with fresh bread or boiled potatoes.

The European larch is one of worlwide round 12 species of larch. She belongs to the family of pinaceae.

Blossoms and young leaf tips are eatable

Delicate female and male blossoms are immediately edible, a great refreshment on a walk. The aroma is very subtle and not at all resinous or like terpentine.  You can use young tips of the shoot branches to prepare a very tasty tea. Dipped in chocolate they are a wonderful dessert. You will find a recipe in my book Natur Gourmet.
Finely chopped sprinkled over a heartly soup with cheese, their taste is also very refreshing. The pink coloured female blossoms, often to be found only in hard to reach heights, are used  to prepare Larch Liqueur or Spirit. Who is lucky to pick some in spring, should give about a handful on one liter high percentage alcohol, min 40%, and add some candy sugar. Let the mixture to soak for a few weeks. Larch is attributed to several healing effects. Mostly common is larch turpentine, also known under the name „Venetian Turpentine“. The ointment obtained from larch resin contains up to 20% essential oil and over 50% of resin acids. It shall help to treat gout, lumbago, rheumatism, neuralgia, colds, circulatory disorders and infections.

also known under the name indian balsam or exactly himalayan balsam. The plant is a neophyte, and it behaves like any other plant - it occupies niches.

Plants migrate, leave space for others and look for a new, more suitable habitat for themselves. 

The annual plant is native in the himalayans, and has been imported to decorate gardens from Kashmir to Great Britain in 1839. From there it spread fast all over europe. Indeed latest studies discovered that there is no cause for concern. The plant is spreading very strongly, but it passes just as quickly. It is not able to outlast lack of water, and it does not form rhizomes. It reproduces only via seeds.

You can use young leaves, or the tip of leaves. But use only a small amount! 

In larger quantities they are used in medicine as laxative and diuretics.