Solomon's Seal, False Solomon's Seal

Which came first, letterboxing or foraging? In our case, it was foraging. I learned about letterboxing from a friend, and figured it would be a good hobby since we were already walking around in the woods being very observant. Our week usually consists of seeking out foods in known spots, and letterboxing in a new area hoping to get lucky with some edibles. We went out to find a box, found some Solomon's Seal and False Solomon's Seal along the way. This is a new edible for us, so we took some photos, gathered the edible roots, and came home to try some. There are similarities and differences between the plants.

On the Solomon's Seal (Polygonatum biflorum, or Polygonatum commutatum), the stalks are singular, arching and smooth, and it's leaves are alternate, elliptical, without stems, and the veins run parallel from base to tip. The plants grow very slowly in colonies, so you should only dig a few from each area at any time, since taking the rhizome will kill the plant. Beneath each leaf axil grow the flowers, which are white, bell-like, and tubular. It's root is white once dug and scrubbed. Each flower will later become a dark blue fruit in late summer. They are not edible, but useful for identification purposes later in the season when you can dig for the roots, although they are supposedly sweeter in the spring.

On the False Solomon's Seal, or Solomon's Plume (Maianthemum racemosum), the stalks and leaves are very similar to the Solomon's Seal. The visible difference lies in the flower stalk, or plume. The white flowers grow in a terminal panicle, clustered at the end of the stalk. Each flower is tiny, with 6 petals. These flowers will become spherical red fruit in the autumn, and are edible, but not really palatable. These plants also grow very slowly in colonies, and need to be carefully and selectively harvested. We dug a few rhizomes, and they are a light tan color, with many small roots coming from the rhizome.

The roots were about as thick as a marker. The rhizome only grows about 1-3 inches a year, and you can see where last year's stalk grew along the length of the rhizome. We scrubbed the roots, and tasted then raw. They were very fibrous, and a bit sweet and nutty. Robert then cut them into 1/2 inch sections and boiled them briefly, and they seemed softer. Both ways, the roots were tasty, although not a favorite of ours. The shoots of both plants are also edible in early spring, and we will return to this area to try some next year. It was a nice surprise to find them on our walk today, and a good tasting experience for us.

Violet Recipe - Violet Jelly

I had tried to make violet jelly last year, but it did not work. It never set, and I had 2 jars of violet syrup. I made a teeny batch again this week, just to try another recipe, and it works great. We don't make a lot of jellies in our house, mostly jams. We purchased a food mill last year just for jams, and it removes seeds wonderfully, while retaining pulp from fruit. Jellies are clear, almost like looking through colored glass, while jams are opaque, filled with fruit pulp. This violet jelly is the prettiest shade of electric lavender, it almost looks artificial, but it's all natural.

.

.

Violet Jelly makes about 5-8oz. jars

.

2 c. violet flowers

2c. boiling water

1/4 c. lemon juice

4 c. sugar

1 3oz. pkg Certo liquid pectin

.

1. Pour the boiling water over the violet flowers in a heatproof glass measuring cup. Allow the violets to steep at least 2 hours. Strain out the solids through a coffee filter.

2. In a large saucepot, stir the lemon juice and sugar into the violet infusion.

3. Bring the infusion and sugar to a rolling boil. Add the liquid pectin, and boil for 2 minutes.

4. Pour the hot jelly into hot, sterilized jars, cover, and process in a water bath for 10 minutes.

Foraging Report 05/02/2010

We picked some more of the same spring greens this week, along with some violet flowers for jam, sassafras root for tea and jam, and more ramps. The ramps are just starting to wind down here, and will soon send out their flower stalk to bloom. We found a teeny bit of watercress to munch on, and tried a few trout lily leaves too. Their yellow flowers have already passed, so they are not in the best season to eat the leaves, but we can now wait for the foliage to pass and dig some bulbs soon. We spotted tons of orpine around, and it is great as a trail nibble, tasting just like raw green beans. Robert gathered a big bag of young yarrow leaves to dry for tea, and he transplanted a few plants here in the yard. He found a big patch of sheep sorrel, also called sour grass, and grabbed another big bag of that. Cattails are putting up shoots already, and the blackberries and wineberries are leafing out. Wild blueberries and huckleberries are flowering, and Gillian likes to make yellow resin prints on her fingers from the huckleberry leaves.

.

We ordered a new book by Samuel Thayer called "Nature's Garden: A Guide to Identifying, Harvesting, and Preparing Edible Wild Plants". It has some great photos, and some super, in-depth information on one of our favorite edibles-autumn olive. It also has a chapter on trout lily which we have in abundance in our area, and which we were previously unfamiliar with as an edible. This book will join his previous book "The Forager's Harvest: A Guide to Identifying, Harvesting, and Preparing Edible Wild Plants" on our ever-growing bookshelf of reference material.

Ramps Recipe - Ramps Pickles

What is this? A jar of pickled pink worms? No, pickled ramp bulbs. I found a few recipes online and sort of tooks bits of each and put them together to make something that sounded good to me. The taste is very sweet/sour, and the aftertaste is a little bit oniony. Might be good for martinis, we'll just eat them on the side of everything! These are not processed in a water bath, but are kept in the fridge. I got the spices at the local Indian grocery, and the peppercorns from a peppercorn blend.

.

.

.

Pickled Ramps makes 1- 1 quart jar

.

2 pounds ramps bulbs, cleaned, trimmed

Kosher salt for blanching

1 c. white wine vinegar

1 c. sugar

1 T. salt

1 c. water

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp coriander seeds

1 tsp fennel seeds

1 tsp red peppercorns

1 tsp white peppercorns

1 bay leaf

.

1. Bring a pot of salted water to a rolling boil, and blanche the cleaned and trimmed bulbs for about 20 seconds to retain the color and crunch. Drop the bulbs in ice water to quickly chill. Shake off the excess water and stuff the bulbs into a clean 1 qt. jar.

2. Combine the vinegar, sugar, salt, and water in a sauce pan and bring to a boil. Add the spices and bay leaf.

3. Pour the hot vinegar brine over the ramps in the jar and cover and cool. Refridgerate.

Foraging Report 04/25/2010

Gillian and Robert both had the week off, so we did a lot of driving this week. We ended up in several assorted areas of the state, from the Litchfield hills to Hamonassett Beach. We managed to find a few letterboxes, and attended a small gather at the Audubon Society in Glastonbury where we hiked the trails with fellow letterboxers.

We saw more of the same this week, when it comes to edibles. Dandelion greens, nettles shoots, chickweed, and wild garlic. We are still eating the ramps greens we picked last Sunday, and I keep peeking at the pickled roots wondering when I can open up the jar and eat them. Japanese knotweed is getting too tall to pick, it would be too stringy for recipes. Second year garlic mustard greens from the top of the flower stalk are good for gathering for pesto, and the white flowers are all open. We did come across some cattails big enough to gather a few hearts as a trail nibble, and are looking forward to an abundance soon. Evening primrose roots and wild carrot roots also were dug and boiled to eat.

Wild grapes are just starting to send forth leaves, and autumn olive bushes are opening flowers. It is nice to see the wild fruit trees in flower in the woods since most trees have not leafed out yet. Jewelweed sprouts are up, along with the first pokeweed shoots. Plenty of orpine to be found in a local park, along with some rather tough burdock roots.

My knotweed wine has really slowed it's fermentation, but the dandelion flower wine is still bubbling away. The knotweed wine is about a week older, and the color has mellowed out and cleared a bit to a light pink. I hope to have this drinkable by September, along with a wild grape wine I started last fall. We are willing to drink them "young" and rough, since our winemaking is mostly for fun, and just to see if it works!

Stinging Nettles Recipe - Nettle Lentil Soup

Finding a patch of stinging nettles can be great, or it can really suck for your ankles. Being stung when you are not expecting it feels like being stuck with 1000 red-hot needles coated with tabasco sauce. Finding a patch while out letterboxing, and not inadvertently stepping in that patch is a super find for a forager. We were so amazed with this field filled with nettles, I carved and hid a letterbox Foraging Nettles there, along with a micro bonus box.



Nettles (Urtica dioica) are a perennial herb growing on a hollow, stringy stem. The leaves are coarsely toothed, papery, 1-3 inches long, with a pointed tip and shaped a bit like an elongated heart. All parts of the plant contain the stings, which are like mini hypodermic needles filled with formic acid, histamine, acetylcholine and other nasty things to irritate your skin. Pick the shoots in early spring before the small, greenish, inconspicuous flowers appear by using gloves. In a large patch, it is easy to fill a large paper bag quickly.




The sting disappears with cooking or drying. You can steam the leaves, but the stems are too
tough and fibrous to eat. We also add the leaves directly to cook in soup, chop them up to use in quiche or spanikopita filling, or eat then lightly stir fried as a green. The stems and leaves can be dried in a dark place to use for an herbal tisane in the winter months when the "green" flavor is a welcome one. Nettles contain wonderful amounts of calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, vitamin C, beta carotene, and provide an excellent source of plant-based protein.




Here is a favorite recipe based on something I found in Vegetarian Times, using stinging nettles instead of spinach.








Nettle Soup with Lentils makes about 6 servings


2 Tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, diced
1/3 c. dry lentils
1/2 tsp. tumeric
4 c. vegetable broth
3 c. water
10 oz. fresh nettle leaves, cleaned
about 20 ramps leaves and stems, chopped
1/2 c. dry linguine, broken into pieces
1 c. plain yogurt
1 Tbsp chopped fresh mint



1. Heat the oil and sautée the onions over medium heat until browned.
2. Add lentils and tumeric and sautée 1 minute. Pour in vegetable broth and water and bring to a boil, reduce to medium and cook 10 minutes.
3. Add nettles and ramps, simmer 20 minutes longer.
4. Stir in pasta pieces, and cook 10 minutes longer, until the pasta is al dente. The broth should be a deep, greenish-yellow.
5. Ladle soup into bowls and serve with a dollop of yogurt and fresh mint.

Dandelion Recipe - Dandelion and Potato Soup

Common dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) is widespread, easily identified, incredibly nutritious, and vehemently hated by many gardeners. It is one of the first flowers of spring, and the last flowers of autumn, good news for bees. There are several species here in the US, all edible in the same manner. All parts of the plant will emit a milky sap when broken.

The green leaves grow from a basal rosette, and are 3-12 inches long, 1/2-2 inches wide, and are deeply toothed. The leaves are best gathered in the early spring before the flowers appear, or after a frost. They may have some bitter characteristics that can be lightly boiled out. The greens can be eaten raw in salads, or steamed or sautéed into just about any dish. They work well in quiches or soups, or even as a stir-fry vegetable. Raw greens contain amazing amounts of Vitamin A, acscorbic acid, beta-carotene and thiamin. The greens also contain plant based calcium, potassium, and iron.

The yellow, composite flower grows on a hollow stalk 2-18 inches tall. I think the flowers are "smart" and know exactly how tall to grow--just under your lawnmower's blades' height! The flower will mature into the familiar white, poofy seedhead, wonderful for kids to blow around your yard. The flowers are also edible pulled apart in salads, and Gillian will often have a dandelion flower in her mouth while waiting for the bus. They can be fried in batter as fritters, pickled whole, and made into a dandelion wine.

The thick, brittle branching taproot grows up to 10 inches long. It is nearly impossible to get the whole root out at once, and the remaining bits will grow a new plant. Scrape the beige skin off the root and chop the root to add to soups like carrots or parsnips. The root can also be oven dried and ground to be used as a coffee extender like chickory.

Robert made some pickles, and we spent a long time separating yellow petals from the green heads for a small batch of wine. More greens went into a soup, some sautéed with ramps, some more frozen. We pick in a large area where I was inspired to hide a letterbox--Foraging Dandelion! The whole area was underwater during the spring storms this year, and some areas were a bit washed out, but those dandelions came back and blanketed the grass with sunny yellow blooms.

Dandelion Potato Soup makes 6 servings

olive oil

4 cloves garlic

2 starchy potatoes, peeled and diced

6 c. vegetable broth

1 c. chopped ramps greens and stems

1 c. dandelion greens, blanched and chopped

1/2 c. dandelion flowers, blanched

salt and pepper

6 T sour cream

1. Sautée garlic in olive oil until softened, add diced potato and cook until lightly browned.

2. Pour in the vegetable broth, and bring up to a boil. Turn to a simmer for 5 minutes.

3. Add the ramps greens, dandelion greens and dandelion flowers. Simmer another 10 minutes, until the potatoes have mostly desintegrated. Season with salt and pepper.

4. Serve with a dollop of sour cream stirred into each bowl for a super "tang".

More Photos Here