Mâche, Corn Salad

“Mâche” is the word you’ll see in fancy groceries and on menus, but that term is a recent French import. If you plant these greens in your garden or find them in a farmers’ market, they will be called corn salad or lamb’s lettuce. (Some restaurateurs say they put “mâche” on the menu because diners expect sweet corn when they read “corn salad.”) I would like to write about this plant’s numerous varieties (many still available through gardening catalogues) and charming names (none of which make it a relative of lamb’s quarters or any true lettuce). But what is presently in markets is limited in form and nomenclature, so I’ll stay with that.