Foraging & Cooking Wild Foods Archive

Wild Mushroom Tart

Last week I was a chaperone for my daughter’s 3rd grade camping trip.  On the way home we spied a beautiful orange Chicken of the Woods mushroom on a tree and promptly harvested it for weekend dinner. Read more ›

Black Walnut Nocino, Two Ways

For many years I’ve watched with envy while several of my favorite food bloggers in France, Italy and California harvest green walnuts in June to make classic Nocino (Italian) or Liqueur de Noix (French).  The liqueur is like bittersweet walnut extract.  Poured over ice it makes a lovely aperitif, and it’s also yummy served over ice cream. Read more ›

Dandelion Wine

Spring is finally upon us! And the dandelions are on the move, taking over lawns, one sunny flower at a time. My partner Christopher fondly remembers his family’s tradition of making Dandelion Wine, so last year we convinced (bribed) our neighborhood kids to pick as many of the bright yellow flowers as they could find. Read more ›

Chicken of the Woods Wild Mushrooms

Fall is a great time to forage Chicken of the Woods mushrooms.  The bright orange fan shaped mushroom grow like frilly shelves from the side of trees and stand out like a flag.  Last year we found a huge clutch of them exploding from a downed tree at Lake Maria State Park in Minnesota.   Read more ›

Dandelion Shrub

Dandelions are everywhere.  Every year I plan to make dandelion wine and every year I miss my chance.  So this year I made a last minute mad dash to forage the yellow blooms before the summer heat took over, but I only had 4 cups of petals, not nearly enough for a proper batch of wine.  So I made a shrub instead. My gin and tonic will never be the same.

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Much Ado About Mulberries

Mulberries have become part of the urban foraging scene, or gleaning as some folks call it.  I’ve never understood how mulberries earned their bad rap.  Mulberries are classified as “trash” trees that make a mess and have no good purpose.  But I’ve always liked them.  Read more ›

Foraged Burdock Part Deux

In my previous post on foraging burdock, I talked about harvesting the roots.  Now it’s time to forage the new stalks that shoot up from the plant in their second year, before they flower.  I harvested the burdock from an empty city lot next to the fledgeling Greenleaf Community Garden, where my partner has a plot.  Read more ›

Hunting Morels

It’s a cool, rainy day.  We are in the wilderness, hiking through bushes and trees, noses down, eyes scanning the forest floor, hunting.  In my pocket is a knife, a net bag and hopefully, my car keys.  It’s not big game we are after, it’s mushrooms; specifically, the shy, elusive and delicious morel.  For two and a half hours we search, finding nothing but prickly ash, berry briars, ticks and poisonous fungus.  Read more ›

What’s Up Burdock?

Foraging for burdock root has been on my radar for a while.  I love the idea of foraging for mushrooms, vegetables and fruit, particularly within the urban area of Minneapolis.  It’s a basic skill that I’ve wanted to further develop to take advantage of ultra local resources.  Read more ›