say that 4 times very fast!
I thought I'd hike back and check on the leeks...or wild ramps. They were too small to dig near the creek, so I headed towards the back of the property that was nearer to the ridge top.
Still not prime size, but I was hungry for forest food. Fresh forest food and if it took all day, I'd find some. I found enough leeks to flavor a dish and decided to come back in a few days when they were larger. I'd pick enough and leave enough so I wouldn't clean out the patch. I could dehydrate them to use next winter.
Charlie and I spent a long time looking for Wild Parsnip. Well, Charlie sniffed around and did dog stuff. I took the leeks home and cleaned them.
I was able to find one parsnip that was on the bank of the creek.
So I grabbed a long shovel and started a hike along the roadside on the ridge. I was pretty disappointed not to find any along the north south ditches. I crossed the neighbor's contoured crop land and hiked along the road side that had south exposure.
I found just enough for a good taste.
These roots are as ugly as ugly can be.
I used an old toothbrush to scrub them and cut out any spots. A peeler helps clean them up too.
And I tossed it all in a bowl with my frozen carrots and added a few morel mushrooms.
We'll see what this mixture ends up like tasting.
If nothing else it sure is colorful!
I also made Nettle Tea with the first leaves of nettles in the garden that I still need to clean up.
The warm tea tasted pretty good after wandering about foraging for forest food!
Good for you! You could be on one of those survival shows!
ReplyDeleteWell, we didn't eat squirrel, but we did have that discussion and Rich's daughter sent me a recipe for 'possum and raccoon. I have eaten raccoon when I was a child, grandma had it mixed with ground beef and we ate it as a hamburger...I think. I thought it was pretty neat then. Not sure about that now.
DeleteMy Mother knew where to find food too and I regret not spending the time with her to learn everything she knew.
ReplyDeleteNothing beats fresh free food that you had fun gathering. :)
My Grandmother always pointed out things we could eat and we used to pick Lamb's Quarters in the spring to eat as a veggie. I grew up loving them as a vegetable I could pick at the start of each June.
DeleteA young neighbor of mine also introduced me to nettles in the form of tea and greens. I am grateful for that too.