Vegetable Salad Series 3: Kitchen Maid’s Sorrow

Kitchen Maid’s Sorrow

They call it the poor man’s asparagus,
the housewife’s bane, the winter spear.
Barons and counts won’t have it near,
so no innkeeper puts it on the menu.

With its sandy skin and sticky sap,
most people cannot bear the sight.
It brings the kitchen maids to plight,
though once it’s cooked it’s a tasty bite.

Yet I do love salsify,
because I once received some, wrapped in newspaper,
from a market woman who wished to teach me
that every vegetable deserves respect,
though I detest preparing them,
and their juices stain my clothes.

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