BOTANICAL NAME: Valerianella eriocarpa
FAMILY: Valerianaceae
Golden corn salad is an Italian native widely consumed in early spring, especially during Lent. At one time it was gathered almost exclusively from the wild, but in the nineteenth century it was brought under garden cultivation. A close relative of true corn salad, or mâche, this is a distinct species that is also found in other areas of the Mediterranean, even on the North African side, which has led some plant historians to suppose that it was taken over to Africa by the Romans. Whatever the convolutions of its history, golden corn salad is an elegant salad plant that was first mentioned in herbals of the 1500s for its medical qualities similar to lettuce. Mixed salads of lettuce and corn salad were often eaten to cool the heat of heart-burn or to help increase the milk in nursing mothers.
Golden corn salad is first discussed as a kitchen vegetable in Léon-Claude Noisette’s 1829 Manuel du jardinier. Even though the French made it fashionable under the name of mâche d’Italie, the plant has long been known to country people, even in Switzerland where it is called gelbes Nüssli. It is also the geeli Ritscherli of the Swiss Mennonites who settled in America in the eighteenth century.
Mixed salads of lettuce and corn salad were often eaten to cool the heat of heartburn or to help increase the milk in nursing mothers.
It was from the seed archive of Switzerland’s Pro Specie Rara that my first dips at golden corn salad became possible, and I have not regretted it. This is an exquisite vegetable. In rich soil it grows much larger than common corn salad, often attaining the size of six or seven inches in diameter with long, golden yellow leaves. The brilliant color cannot be accurately described because morning sunlight only intensifies it. Since it is more heat tolerant than common corn salad, the golden corn salad does not bolt as quickly either. Thus it can be planted later in the spring for a harvest of greens well into the early summer. I have even planted it in the shade of a trellis in mid-July with good success, so I suppose it could be grown as a dainty border plant among miniature lettuces, especially tightly headed varieties like frizzy Impulse or wine-red Merlot (page 152).
Although the leaves can be scattered in soups for added visual effect, golden corn salad is at its showiest when used in salads or as a garnish. It makes a brilliant contrast when added to mesclun salad mixes or with other showy greens like crimson orache, Tom Thumb lettuce, variegated winter cress (page 245), or the young purple shoots of Viola labradorica purpurea. Dark colored saladings always make golden corn salad look even yellower, and like its cousins a little peanut oil in the dressing will definitely bring out its nutty flavor.