Lovage Plant “Love potion”

Happy Valentine's Day!

Lovage plant(Levisticum Officinale L.) is native to the Mediterranean region of southern Europe and Asia Minor and can be found growing throughout central and southern Europe. Its flavour and smell can be described as a mix of celery and parsley. First century Apicius cookbook which is the nearest thing to a Roman cookbook which survived today, but practices from this book have not been adopted by the food recipe writers until the fifteenth centuries (as per references from the Food History book by Rey Tannahill). Apicius cookbook recommends to make a a sauce for roast meats as follows: 1/4 of an ounce (7ml) each of lovage, parsley, celery seed, dill, asafetida root, hazelwort, cyperus, caraway, cumin and ginger, mixed with 2 1/2 fluid ounces of oil. I believe this was a recipe to prepare a meat marinate and if you do try it out, all these spices add rich umami flavour to prepared dishes.

How To Use Lovage Plant? ….with a little a bit of folklore story…

Beware: in witchcraft, lovage was among the many love potions ingredients (hence its name!) – like celery, this herb is supposed to stimulate the libido.
Lovage was once believed to have the power to induce attraction but it could affect both men and women. Mothers would bath their daughters in lovage, so that when they’d grow up they’d be attractive. A boy bathed in lovage would easily find a girlfriend when he grew up. Some picked the plant at midnight during a full moon, uttering the following charm: Lovage, I pick you with five fingers and a sixth hand, make everybody want to be my friend. - From the ethnographic monthly ‘Wisła’, 1889, volume 3, No. 4, trans. MK and Culture.PL#heritage
Other legend says if its leaves are used by the bride - asking for happiness in marriage is not a sin, and if one leaf attached to a wedding dress is to ensure it, it's worth a try.
Lovage has deodorant qualities and an infusion of the leaves was added to their baths by the Romans. This can be achieved at home by tying dried leaves in a cheesecloth and placing them under the hot tap when running a bath.

One of its features is that it dries easily: simply suspend a bouquet upside down in a dark, dry spot and its leaves will soon be dry enough to crumble between your fingers (if leaves turn yellow, the environment is too humid). Even dried, it will retain excellent aromatic qualities.

To make an infusion, steep 1-2 tsp of the fresh or dry Lovage plant in 200ml of boiling water for 5-15 minutes. After this time strain the mixture and drink.
When the plant flowers, it attracts a host of pollinators. A little later in the season, it provides a multitude of celery-flavoured seeds, with a little extra spice and sweetness. Try substituting celery seeds in pickles!
Candied Lovage - Amazing! Made it first time in summer of 2022. The stems are blanched, then soaked in heavy syrup, boiled in that syrup, soaked again — several times — until they turn translucent. You then dry the stems a bit and roll them in caster sugar. If you love making tortes, the candied lovage is excellent to decorate them with its distinctive green color.
A fresh leaves chopped (or dried onces crushed between your fingers) and spread in an omelet will give a different flavor to your meal. Or what about using its stem as straw in the famous Bloody Mary!
Lovage plant can be brewed or can be added to chicken, most of my soup recipes, salads, bread, cakes, beauty products.
Lovage salad dressing -check it out!
Lentil with Sorrel, lovage and Nettle- check it out!
Core benefits: diuretic, aids digestion and decongestant.
Lovage is not recommended for pregnant women, lactating women and people with kidney failure.