As a rule, the mention of pine needles evokes a persistent association with frosty days, New Years, tangerines, gifts, Santa Claus and miracles. Eating pine needles is not common and for many, this idea will cause bewilderment and a smile. Meanwhile, the needles have a lot of useful properties and with the addition of this ingredient, you can cook many interesting dishes.
Useful properties of needles
First, you should talk about the beneficial properties of pine needles. In Siberia, since ancient times, conifers have been considered both healers and breadwinners. In addition to pine nuts and coniferous resin (resin of coniferous trees), known for their healing and nutritional properties, young shoots and cones of coniferous trees are also famous. Decoctions and preserves are prepared from them, added to tea, fleeing vitamin deficiency and the harsh Siberian cold. The needles are rich in vitamins and have a valuable mineral composition. Young needles contain a record amount of vitamin C, which determines the general strengthening and immunostimulating properties of needles. Tender shoots contain large quantities of B vitamins, as well as P, PP, K, A, E, N.
The composition of common needles is dominated by higher fatty acids (palmitic, related to saturated fatty acids, and linoleic, related to unsaturated fatty acids), also needles contain other acids: benzoic, stearic acids - all of them are indispensable for the human body. At the same time, it is believed that saturated fatty acids are found in animal products, such important acids are extremely rare in plant products, therefore, eating pine needles is especially necessary for people leading a humane, conscious lifestyle, that is, vegetarians, vegans, raw vegans.
In addition, the needles contain such micro and trace elements as iron, magnesium, potassium and calcium, which makes the use of needles especially useful for the prevention of diseases of the cardiovascular, nervous system, as well as for reducing the risk of developing iron deficiency anemia.
Contraindications to the use of needles
Despite the unique composition of the needles, there are conditions and diseases in which the use of this product is strictly prohibited or requires mandatory consultation with a doctor: this is the period of pregnancy and breastfeeding, some liver and kidney dysfunctions, acute heart and kidney failure. Basically, the listed contraindications concern only coniferous decoctions, which are prepared as medicines. For the rest, the introduction of a small amount of needles into the diet will only be beneficial for the body.
What to cook using coniferous shoots, needles, buds or cones
A small amount of needles can be added when preparing fruit, berry and vegetable juices. This component will enrich both the taste and the composition of the drinks.
Squeeze juice from one cucumber, add 1 - 2 teaspoons of lemon juice. Rinse and grind a few young pine needles, grind in a mortar, adding a teaspoon of water. Strain through cheesecloth and squeeze. Mix with cucumber juice.
Pass young coniferous shoots (1 - 2 pcs) through a meat grinder, pour cold water (3 l) and add lemon juice or 2 - 4 lemon slices. Insist 30 minutes.
Pass through a meat grinder a few sprigs of mint, 1 - 2 needles, half a lemon and pour 3 liters of cold water. Let it brew for 30 minutes and strain.
When brewing tea, black or green, add a small pine twig or pine cone to the teapot. Brew tea as usual.
For making jam, shoots and green cones of coniferous trees are used. A thick syrup is boiled from sugar and water, in which the needles are boiled. This jam is used for the prevention and treatment of acute respiratory infections and acute respiratory viral infections.
With the addition of pine needles, you can make an unusual raw food cake. To prepare the cake, you will need raw peeled sunflower seeds, which are pre-soaked in cold water for at least 30 minutes. In total, you will need 3.5 cups of such seeds. You will also need 100 grams of pitted prunes, which must be rinsed and filled with cold water for half an hour. In addition, you will need several branches of young needles, a few leaves of fresh mint and 100 ml of cold water. The cake has two layers. To prepare the first layer, 1, 5 cups of seeds, prunes, 50 ml of water are ground into a homogeneous mass, laid out in a mold, covered with cling film, and put into the freezer. The remaining seeds are mixed with chopped banana, mint, pine needles and water is added. Then, using a blender, grind into a thick creamy mass. This cream is spread on the first layer, leveled and kept in the freezer for 1 hour. The finished cake is laid out on a platter and decorated as desired.
You should not abuse the needles, as this can provoke the development of headaches.
