Lepidium Species, Cow Cress, Field Pepperweed, Field Pepperwort

Field Pepperweed or Cow Cress is an edible wild plant. The following books attest to this.

The "Edible Wild Plants: A Nor...Read Moreth American Field Guide" by Elias & Dykeman has this to say...

"Harvest: Young shoots and leaves in spring.

Preparation: Another member of the mustard family. Use Cow Cress greens sparingly in salad with less bitter species. As a potherb, boil in 1 to 2 changes of water. Try recipes given for other mustards. Leaves high in vitamins A and C. Peppery seeds can be used to season meats, soups, and salads."

The "Edible Wild Plants: Eastern / Central North America" by Lee Allen Peterson has this to say...

"Use: Salad, cooked green, seasoning. Add the pungent young leaves to salads or boil for 10 min. Add the peppery green seedpods to hot soups and stews. Leaves contain vitamins C & A, iron, and protein."

"The Encyclopedia of Edible Plants of North America: Nature's Green Feast" by Francois Couplan, Ph.D. says...

"In most species, the leaves are pungent and can be added raw to salads, as a condiment, or cooked as a vegetable.

The seeds have been used as a spice. Western Indians used to mix them with other seeds in their pinole.

In the spring, the young inflorescences of L. campestre - naturalized from Europe - resemble small broccolis (Brassica oleracea var. italica) and can be used as such, either raw or cooked."