Until I was twenty something, the only edible part of sunflower I knew was salty, musty seeds in plastic packets. They’re so much more though. Fresh seeds are great to cook with, and their high oil content makes them *almost* a seamless substitute for pine nuts in things like pesto, which is great for saving…
Eating the Whole Plant
Kale Sprouts
Imagine for a moment the wonder that could be if Brussels sprouts and kale had little babies. Now, contain your excitement, because it is a thing, and has been for a number of years. They also go by the name of kalettes, and they’ve been popping up all over the place, from conventional grocery stores to Trader…
Broccoli Leaves
I was walking through the gardens at the farm, clipping some weeds to eat in between the rows of broccoli. I’d cooked nice farm broccoli and commodity broccoli over the course of my career, and I knew that the commodity stuff would generally have larger heads and less flavor, but I’d never really stopped to…
Burdock Flower Stalks
Arctium lapa. Burdock. Nuisance of gardeners and landscapers everywhere and giver of one of the most delicious feral vegetables I’ve tasted. Spring 2016, I tried cutting a few of the central flower shoots. I knew some plants would make shoots and some wouldn’t, but I didn’t exactly comprehend the entire process. Here’s the skinny. Burdock…
Cow Parsnip Blossoms
I’m jealous of the old knowledge and culinary traditions woven into other cultures. A few years ago I was looking for some info on where Italians pick porcini. I found an Italian website (I’ve since tried to find it and it’s gone or has been taken down) that talked about hunting mushrooms, but also…
White Winter Vegetables
As a society it seems to me we’ve more or less completely forgotten what it means for food to have a season. Every year I inevitably get questions about how much asparagus can be offered in November, or if someone can get Minnesota peas in March. But, growing up I was just as ignorant. I…
Eating the Whole Beet
I need a garden. The more time I spend near them in the growing season the more I uncover about the plants as I watch their growing cycle. An edible pod here, a shoot there, a seed afterwords maybe. A couple months ago when I was showing someone how to clean chard and I had…
Squash and Pumpkin Shoots
A few weeks ago I was walking through the garden picking squash blossoms when I saw these little curly-cue guys here and there in the squash and pumpkin patches. There was a dialogue in my brain that went like this: The squash is growing on a vine Peas grow on a vine I eat peas,…
Lily Bulbs
Last fall I was driving home from a video shoot with my photographer friend Chris Bohnhoff and I stopped in a town to get some gas and a cup of coffee. While drinking my coffee on a bench, I noticed a sign and a bunch of dirt filled boxes in a ratty looking lawn across…
Nasturtium Leaves And Flowers
Lots of chefs like to garnish things with flowers, they’re pretty, but often that’s about it. Nasturtiums though? They’re a completely different story. They’re not only beautiful, but have a great flavor-candy sweet and peppery like watercress, all at the same time. With how good they taste, It’s surprising to me that more people…
Eating The Whole Dandelion
Once in a while I learn something new about a vegetable that changes how I think about cooking it. One of my favorite memories is about cooking the spinach I get from my friend, a 70 year old gardener from Oregon named George. George always sends the most beautiful, pristine greens and vegetables, air freighted…
Wild Mustard Raabs / Wintercress buds
When we found out we were hosting the Swedish ambassador for a dinner two weeks ago, I was pumped. It was supposed to be a key moment in the drive for luring the world’s fair to Minnesota, which could be a reality if our team’s food really knocks the socks off of people at the…
Milkweed Buds
Milkweed buds have become one of my favorite summer vegetables. They’re beautiful to look at, and watching their transformation from bud to flower has changed my thoughts about what qualifies as a vegetable in general. These will grow on roadsides and in forest clearings and open areas in parks. Even though they will fruit like…