[caption id="attachment_3135" align="aligncenter" width="900"] "Balaassoun" in the wild. Photo ©www.amateuranthecologist.com[/caption] Balghassoun or Balaassoun (بلعصون) known as garden Anchusa is a wild edible plant that grows in the mountains of Lebanon and Syria where it is collected during spring. Anchusa is native to Europe and western Asia and eastern Maghreb. It is a bristly perennial plant that can grow up to 50 cm in height. Its leaves are straight and lance-shaped with a hairy and rough texture. The flowers are small and tubular of bright violet-blue color. Balaassoun can be prepared by boiling it then stir-frying with olive oil and some garlic gloves. But the most common way to cook it is in fritters and omelette. [caption id="attachment_3137" align="alignnone" width="900"] Balaassoun fritters[/caption] Ingredients: Balaassoun leafy stems 2 free range eggs 1/2 cup of Flour Salt Vegetable oil Preparation steps:

1. Wash the Balaassoun leaves and stems
2. Dip them for 30 seconds in hot water to remove the small hairs on the leaves
3. In a bowl, combine the eggs, flour and salt to make the batter
4. In a frying pan, heat the oil
5. Dip the Balaassoun in the batter and fry in the hot oil

[caption id="attachment_3136" align="alignnone" width="900"] Balaassoun beautiful flowers. Photo ©wikimedia[/caption]