• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Forager Chef

Foraging and Cooking Mushrooms, Wild and Obscure Food

  • Home
  • About
  • Mushrooms
    • Mushroom Archive
    • Posts by Species
      • Other Mushrooms
        • Lobster Mushrooms
        • Shrimp of the Woods
        • Truffles
        • Morels
        • Shaggy Mane
        • Hericium
        • Puffball
      • Polypores
        • Hen of the Woods
        • Dryad Saddle
        • Chicken of The Woods
        • Cauliflowers
        • Ischnoderma
        • Beefsteak
      • Chanterelles
        • Black Trumpet
        • Hedgehogs
        • Yellowfeet
      • Gilled
        • Matsutake
        • Honey Mushrooms
        • Russula / Lactarius
          • Candy Caps
          • Saffron Milkcap
          • Indigo Milkcap
      • Boletes
        • Porcini
        • Leccinum
        • Slippery Jacks
    • Recipes
      • Fresh
      • Dried
      • Preserves
    • The Basics
  • Plants
    • Plant Archive
    • Leafy Green Recipes
      • Leafy Green Plant Varieties
    • Ramps
    • Wild Herbs and Spices
      • Spruce and Conifers
      • Pollen
      • Prickly Ash
      • Bergamot / Wild Oregano
      • Golpar / Cow Parsnip
    • Wild Fruit
      • Wild Plums
      • Highbush Cranberry
      • Wild Grapes
      • Rowanberries
      • Wild Cherries
      • Aronia
      • Nannyberry
      • Wild Blueberries
    • From The Garden
    • Nuts, Roots, Tubers and Grains
    • Stalks and Shoots
  • Meat
    • Four-Legged Animals
      • Venison
      • Small Game
    • Poultry
    • Fish/Seafood
    • Offal
    • Charcuterie
  • Recipes
    • Pickles, Preserves, Etc
    • Fermentation
    • Condiments
    • Appetizers
    • Soup
    • Salad
    • Side Dishes
    • Entrees
    • Baking
    • Sweets
  • Video
    • Foraging Videos
    • Lamb and Goat Series
    • YouTube Tutorials
  • Press
    • Podcasts
  • Work
    • Public Speaking
    • Charity and Private Dinners
    • Forays / Classes / Demos

The Forager Chef’s Book of Flora

the cover of the forager chefs book of flora

The cover for my first book. The image is of a green sunflower that I took.

Work on my first book: The Forager Chef’s Book of Flora is almost done, and I finally have some material to share with you. Every week I share an article or special recipe with you, but, over the past three years, I wrote and tested an extra 200 or so recipes, and took thousands of images—most of which I’ve been keeping close to my chest. I thought I’d take this week to share with you a bit of the process of how my first book came to be, and what to expect.

edible sunflower

The original image the cover was derived from.

The concept 

I’ve been writing this website for about 8 years, but it wasn’t until after Lucia’s closed in 2018 that I started working full time on a book proposal. The biggest question I had to grapple at first was an important one: “what’s it going to be about?”. Many people know me for my work with mushrooms (my first wild food love) so it probably came as a surprise when I shared that I was writing a book without a single mushroom recipe in it. 

Cattail shoots, cow parsnip blossoms, asparagus, smilax and raw vegetables with lemon aioli

An unfortunate outtake. I really love this dish, but, the manuscript I originally sent was massive: almost 1.5 books, instead of 1. 

 

 

Flora, Fungi, and Fauna 

I could’ve written a book on mushrooms, but I decided to split up my world into three pieces to ensure that everything has room to be given it’s due when the time comes. So, I pitched a three-book series: Flora, Fungi, and Fauna, or vegetables, mushrooms, and meat, the names inspired by the tasting menus I worked on when I was at Heartland with Chef Lenny Russo. 

Heartland restuarant st paul logo

The titles for my books were inspired by the names of the tasting menus we used to run at Heartland, with the addition of Fungi.

Working on the book has been a journey, and almost 3 years have passed since I started jotting down the outline I presented to the publisher Chelsea Green. I thought it would be relatively straight-forward, I mean, I have hard drives filled with hundreds of folders of recipes from life in the kitchen, along with menus, ideas, outlines, and images numbering in the tens of thousands. Easy right? Not exactly. Once I started really working on the book, I wasn’t satisfied with what I saw (thanks for the perfectionist tic, Mom) so I re-wrote something almost completely new over the coming years. 

Angelica flowers

Angelica flowers.

Lessons wild plants taught me 

Flora is the vegetable portion of my life, but it’s a lot more than that, it’s a statement about lessons that natures taught me. Being a chef in a restaurant taught me how to cook, and you might think that having purveyors and farmers bring anything you want with the flick of a finger on an Iphone might mean you have access to all the foods available, and in a way you do. But, in a way you don’t. 

Alternate cover for the Forager Chefs Book of Flora

An alternate cover image I took.

Being locked in a kitchen is also a sort of isolation from nature. It might surprise you that I’d been harvesting wild food for years before I met my first pumpkin growing in a garden. When I saw a thick, odd-looking vine, I didn’t know what it was, since there was no fruit. The vine was beautiful though, and I remember just kneeling down and holding the fairytale end of the shoots in my hand thinking that they looked delicious. They are. 

squash-shoots

Squash vines and shoots are a good example of how studying wild plants changed how I look at garden vegetables.

I quickly learned I could eat squash shoots, and it was the start of a relationship with nature I never expected, but squash were just the beginning—one of many rabbit holes I followed that are woven into the book. I started to see that the foraging intuition I’d nurtured wasn’t just about wild plants, it was a lens I could look at anything through and ask the all important question: “Can I eat that?”. 

Research and commercial harvesting (2019)

Freed of the chains of the restaurant, I had more time to research than I did before. I searched out things I thought were interesting, rare and novel, but also useful—stuff I just like to eat. I was outside every day, more than I’d ever been in my life, completely immersed in my own world, following wherever the passion pointed me.

chefs alan bergo and jonathan gans

Chef Jonathan Gans and I. Image by Mathew Hintz.

I also harvested more plants, in a greater variety than I ever had while I supplied the Bachelor Farmer during the 2019 growing season. My work and collaboration with Chef Jonathan Gans helping to push my creative vines out in new directions, where they took hold and made fruit of their own. 

forager chefs book of flora cover

The first rough draft of the cover I made as a proof of concept. Fall 2020 didn’t work out, obviously.

Here and there I had breakthroughs and bursts of inspiration, moments that helped me articulate some of the concepts and higher level ideas in the book. One was at a grill-out where I was serving people little green cakes made from plants. Someone asked my if there were artichokes in the cakes, which struck me as odd. I didn’t think anything of it until a second person came up and mentioned the same thing to me. “Why would people think these green patties tasted like artichokes?” I thought. 

Various asters from The Forager Chefs Book of Flora

Clockwise, left to right: unripe sunflower, prickly lettuce flowers and sunchoke, cardoon, galinsoga, artichoke, sunflower seeds. All of these plants are members of the Asteraceae, and will share a bit of common flavor because of it.

Plant families and the flavors they share 

It dawned on me that the green cakes tasted like artichokes to people because I’d made them all out of Galinsoga, which is in the same family (Asteraceae). Then I remembered that sunflower sprouts and cold-pressed sunflower oil taste similarly.I ended up writing a keynote speech on the how related plants can carry flavors as a sort of botanical heritage, and the abbreviated essay of it in the book is one of my favorite parts.

From there, it was only a matter of time until I started trying to understand how I could use botany and Linnean nomenclature not only as a way to efficiently categorize plants, but as a way to understand some of their flavors. There are two shorter essays on culinary application of botany for both understanding and combining flavors in the book. 

Chicken and vegetable soup with wild caraway

Vegetable soup with Apiaceae is a lesson in how to apply a little knowledge of botany to simple flavor combinations. 

the forager chefs book of flora by Chef Alan BergoWhat’s in it (Chapters) 

Leafy Greens 

A big selection of things to do with leafy greens, with deeper dives into some of my favorites. Instead of going down the line, plant by plant when many plants are interchangeable in recipes, I suggest a few options, and note where specific species may be traditionally used or were the inspiration for particular dishes. 

Herbs and aromatics 

My idea of what constitutes an “herb” is more broad than an herb garden. I cover a few interesting herbs like lovage and prickly ash, but also things like spruce tips, cedar cones, and almond-scented meadowsweet flowers, along with a particular herb you can use to make wild vanilla extract. 

Garden Vegetables 

Interesting and time tested things I like to do with garden vegetables, as well as things I’ve developed for them based on inspiration from my study of wild plants. 

Nuts, Grains and Starches 

I cover a few of my favorites in depth here: wild rice, black walnuts, hickory nuts, and a couple new items I haven’t discussed before. There’s recipes, but also different ways of using the whole plant, leaves, or unripe versions of the fruits, as well as light discussions of harvesting and processing. 

Basic Stats 

  • 180 recipes divided between: leafy greens, herbs, vegetables, nuts and starches
  • 230-240 original images 

After going through the process, part of me lets out a heavy sigh when I see the stats of the book, knowing what went into it. My original manuscript ended up getting massive, and we had to cut 25,000 words, about 70 images, as well as the entire chapter on fruit. In order to come out with the 180 recipes and roughly 240 images it will contain, I started with the following: 

  • 1300 image options, whittled down from the ~ 12,000 I took
  • 250 recipes
  • 110,000 words 
  • 2 years of my life 

Pre-order Links 

I’m still finishing up an extra 20 or so images to fill spaces we identified after seeing the layout and page design, so there’s still a little work to be done, but you can see the pre-order pages below. The official publishing date is June 17, 2021. 

Special thanks to those who have been reading for many years through the ups and downs of my restaurant work. The gentle nudges and hints of “where’s the book?” helped push me in the right direction. I appreciate all of you very much.  

Alan 

Amazon

Amazon.co.uk

Barnes & Noble

Bookshop.org

Share this:

  • Facebook
  • Print
  • Email
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • Reddit

Related

Previous Post: « Butternut Squash Steaks with Mushrooms and Salsa Verde
Next Post: Fish Sauce Pickled Enoki »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Laura Bearskin

    February 13, 2021 at 9:52 am

    How lovely! Of course, I preordered this!

    Reply
  2. Dan F

    February 13, 2021 at 9:52 am

    Congratulation! I’m looking forward to it. I can’t believe though that they went with that cover image instead of that gorgeous photo that you posted above! Maybe in the 2nd edition.

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      February 13, 2021 at 10:03 am

      Oh yeah, believe me, coming up with the cover was interesting. Unfortunately in my contract I don’t have final say on the cover, so I have to pick my battles. 🙂

      Reply
    • Karin

      February 13, 2021 at 11:58 am

      I agree, I love your proposed cover…no idea what it is but looks yummy. I will still buy the book, but the colors on the cover turn me off…I guess it might stand out on a store bookshelf.

      Reply
      • Alan Bergo

        February 13, 2021 at 5:19 pm

        I don’t legally have final say on the cover, so I have more important things to do than fight them on it. I learned some important lessons doing the book though.

        Reply
  3. Laura

    February 13, 2021 at 9:59 am

    Congratulations on what will surely be a beautiful book! I can’t wait to receive my copy.

    Reply
  4. Ellen Zachos

    February 13, 2021 at 10:06 am

    Can’t wait to get my hands on this!

    Reply
  5. Amy

    February 13, 2021 at 10:09 am

    Well, now you can add a fourth book: Fruit!

    Reply
  6. Jade

    February 13, 2021 at 10:20 am

    I am so excited for you! Congratulations

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      February 15, 2021 at 8:48 am

      Thank you.

      Reply
  7. troy waldschmidt

    February 13, 2021 at 10:20 am

    Just when I thought my foraging book collection was complete and I was done buying…thanks alot 🙂

    Reply
  8. Sylvie

    February 13, 2021 at 10:25 am

    That looks terrific Alan, and seems really different from other wild food books that have been published – a really unique angle, and one that makes SO MUCH sense. Thank you for giving us a glimpse on the process… wow!

    I look forward to Alan Burgo’s Book of Flora. Heading to Chelsea Green now to pre-order

    Reply
    • Sylvie

      February 13, 2021 at 2:29 pm

      it’s not yet available to pre-order from Chelsea Green!

      Reply
      • Alan Bergo

        February 13, 2021 at 5:16 pm

        I know. I wanted to let everyone know as soon as I had some material to share, but it should be up on their site soon.

        Reply
        • Sylvie

          February 14, 2021 at 8:47 am

          I will check their site regularly as I prefer to order from the publisher. Thank you for the clarification (I see 2 new places added since yesterday!). My apologies for misspelling your last name. 🙁

          Reply
  9. Carla Beaudet

    February 13, 2021 at 10:28 am

    So looking forward to reading this; what a great accomplishment!

    Reply
  10. Dorothy Bacon

    February 13, 2021 at 10:43 am

    Hallelujahs!, Amazing and marvelous work. I am so intrigued and ready to order multiples. There will be nothing like it until your next book appears. I trust you will survive that too. I feel blessed to know you and your creative cooking, but seems cooking does not do justice to describe what you create and how you do it!

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      February 15, 2021 at 8:47 am

      Thanks for everything.

      Reply
  11. Karen

    February 13, 2021 at 10:53 am

    As a forager who teaches how to cook with wild plants, I have been inspired to create my own dishes from several of your shared recipes. I pre-ordered your book and am looking forward to more inspirational experiments!

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      February 15, 2021 at 8:47 am

      Thanks Karen

      Reply
  12. John Kephart

    February 13, 2021 at 11:08 am

    This looks awesome Alan! I’m definitely getting a copy

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      February 13, 2021 at 5:28 pm

      Hope you’re well John. I miss seeing friends at work the most.

      Reply
  13. Marion Sansing

    February 13, 2021 at 11:25 am

    Can’t wait, a beautiful concept!
    Why is it not on the Chelsea Green’s website?
    I love everything but the cover, it looks old fashioned and not yummy, it does not look like the book has anything to do with food. Tell them again! Hope the cover can still be changed!
    Best of luck and I am glad you have material for your second book ;~)

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      February 13, 2021 at 5:27 pm

      It’s not on the website yet, but it will be soon. I wanted to give everyone a heads up as soon as I was legally able to share the cover and some pre-release material. The cover is abstract, for sure, it’s reminiscent of a few sample covers I sent them of other books that would be representative of my work, like Faviken and works by Phaidon press. Something like a plate of food just wouldn’t cut it. If you’ve written a book before, you may know it can be a dense and complicated process.

      Reply
  14. Cal

    February 13, 2021 at 11:34 am

    I definitely want this, and the rest of them when available. Thank you for all the work that went into it. Now why would you have to cut 25,000 words and 70 images? If it was good information I am sure we would all be happy to buy it.

    Reply
  15. Joseph Smith

    February 13, 2021 at 11:46 am

    I also preordered. Thank you for doing the work that went into this. I am tingling actually in anticipation. Especially for your next two on mushrooms and meats. I have dearly enjoyed your blogs.

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      February 13, 2021 at 5:19 pm

      Thanks Joseph.

      Reply
  16. Jerzy Narejko

    February 13, 2021 at 1:04 pm

    My suggestion to do an event with a great organization ,that is OUTSTANDING IN THE FIELD with book signing.Farm dinner somewhere in Minesota or Wisconsin.

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      February 13, 2021 at 5:17 pm

      We’ll see how things play out. It’s going to be interesting. Originally I had a tour planned across the country but IDK what the year will look like now.

      Reply
  17. Louis Vogel

    February 13, 2021 at 1:13 pm

    Your process (of writing/composing) sounds wonderful and exciting.
    What herb were you referring to for wild vanilla extract ?

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      February 13, 2021 at 5:16 pm

      Thanks Louis. The herb in question stays with me until the book comes out. I deal with a lot of content poaching here.

      Reply
  18. Alexis Montgomery

    February 13, 2021 at 2:31 pm

    I am so excited to see a book such as this. I have been foraging for years in the Cascades of WA state…thank you for your creation. I am preordering now.

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      February 13, 2021 at 5:15 pm

      Thank you.

      Reply
  19. Anne

    February 13, 2021 at 2:32 pm

    Awesome and cannot wait!! All my Saturdays are better for receiving your blog post each week and checking out your insta regularly!
    Super happy to support you now and in advance of the next 2 ventures!!!
    And yes, sell the chopped-out pages as a 4th book!!!!!

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      February 13, 2021 at 5:15 pm

      Thanks Anne! Yeah there’s probably going be a stand-alone fruit entry.

      Reply
  20. Tim Maguire

    February 13, 2021 at 4:00 pm

    Congratulations Alan!
    I’m sure this will be a great success and a must read for all your many followers.

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      February 13, 2021 at 5:15 pm

      Thanks Tim. It’s been a ride.

      Reply
  21. Catherine

    February 13, 2021 at 5:02 pm

    Second Marion and Cal.

    Reply
  22. Mary

    February 13, 2021 at 5:14 pm

    Wonderful Alan! I’ve been following you for awhile and love to experiment with some of the ‘vegetables’ you suggest. Can’t wait to get your book!

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      February 13, 2021 at 5:17 pm

      Thanks Mary, I appreciate that very much.

      Reply
  23. Mattie

    February 13, 2021 at 6:53 pm

    Beautiful imagery. I enjoy your blog. Wondering though, how often people confuse you with actor Jai Courtney. Resemblance is uncanny. Good luck with all your endeavors.

    Reply
    • Alan Bergo

      February 14, 2021 at 3:43 pm

      LOL. I hadn’t heard of him. Usually I get Jimmy Fallon.

      Reply
  24. Linda Reinhart

    February 13, 2021 at 8:08 pm

    I’m excited to see you have a book coming out. I, too, prefer your multi-floral covers. I hope those photos are in the book. You are a splendid photographer along with everything else – you’re a regular Renaissance Man. I’ve lived in Louisiana, Minnesota and Alaska and it is amazing how much of your gathering applies to all three areas. Different things in different areas (alas, no hickory nuts in Alaska, or morels in Louisiana) but lots to apply to each one.

    Reply
  25. Laurie

    February 14, 2021 at 8:08 pm

    Congratulations Alan! I’m an outlier, I actually like the cover. All foraging books have collages of wild plants on their covers. Your book cover with a single image in two tones stands apart from the others. It’s….botanical-looking. And the plant shown makes reference to one of the essays in the book, yes? The meditation on plant families and flavors? So, in my mind, the cover speaks to the fact that yours is more than simply a foraging book, and one I am very much looking forward to!

    Reply
  26. Flanman

    February 15, 2021 at 8:39 am

    Nice work Allan! I just put in my preorder as well! Thanks for doing what you do!

    Dave

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating




Primary Sidebar

Pre-Order MY BOOK

Categories

Forager Chef

Forager Chef

Instagram

foragerchef

🌱Ephemeral Week🌱 Last entry. I’ve saved t 🌱Ephemeral Week🌱

Last entry. I’ve saved the smallest, fern gulliest plant for last. 

False Mermaid Weed (Floerkea proserpinacoides) is a good little plant Sam Thayer showed me. It’s tiny, as in all the photos are from me on my belly, in a wet ditch. It’s so small it’s hard to get the camera to even focus on it (see pic with my finger for scale). 

Mermaid weed likes wet areas, like ditches and spots that hold a bit of water (perfect mosquito habitat😁). 

Like chickweed, Floerkia greens are like nature’s Microgreens. They’re in the Limnanthaceae, (a new-ish group of brassicas) and like the Toothwort form earlier this week, you’ll taste a strong mustard-family flavor in a mouthful of their tender stems. 

They’re literally wild mustard sprouts, and, unlike other wild sprouts (garlic mustard 🤬) they stay sprouts, and, they actually taste good. 

It has a wide range over much of the eastern and western U.S., and is listed as secure globally, but is endangered in some states and shouldn’t be disturbed in those places. 

I’m lucky enough to have some large colonies near me so I do clip a few handfuls each year-my annual reward for removing some of the garlic mustard nearby, that, along with atvs, dirt bikes, and contamination from local water pollution, is one of the biggest threats to this tiny green. 

#floerkiaproserpinacoides 
#wildsprouts #mustardsprouts #ferngully #tiny #foraging #mermaid #🧜‍♀️
🌱Ephemeral Week🌱 Virginia Bluebells (Merten 🌱Ephemeral Week🌱

Virginia Bluebells (Mertensia virginica) are one of the most beautiful harbingers of spring I know, as well as one of the most delicious. 

They’re in the Borage family, along with the namesake plant, Comfrey (which I only eat a few flowers of occasionally) and Honeywort. 

The flavor of the greens, like borage, has a rich flavor some people might describe as mushroomy or fishy, but after a just a few moments of cooking (30-60 seconds) they get mild and delicious, with a subtle bitterness. It’s a good bitter though-nothing like dandelions or garlic mustard that aren’t fit to be in the same basket, let alone on the same plate. 

The shoots are sweet and delicious, much more mild than the greens. As they can grow to be over a foot long, they’re almost more of a vegetable than a leafy green, depending on when you harvest them. 

Bluebells love moist, rich soil, but you don’t have to go to the woods to get them. Many people know Virginia Bluebells as a garden plant, and they can make a great edible addition to your landscape.

#virginiabluebells #foraging #ephemerals #springwildflowers #wildfoodlove #mertensiavirginica
🌱Ephemeral Week🌱 Narrow-leaved Wild Leek / 🌱Ephemeral Week🌱

Narrow-leaved Wild Leek / White Ramp (Allium burdickii) 

If you’re in a ramp patch you might occasionally see some with white stems (pic 1,2). These are a cousin to the more common variety with much larger leaves and red stems (pic 3,4,5)

Allium burdickii is not as common as the red-stemmed variety, and in every ramp patch I’ve been in, the white ramp is heavily outnumbered. 

Where I harvest, I like to leave them alone, and mark the areas where they grow with sticks or middens on the ground so I can go back in the fall and help them spread their seeds. I also try and remove garlic mustard when I see it-a much more imminent threat in my mind to ramps than foragers out to gather some leaves. 

2020 was a banner year for ramp seeds, and you can still help the plants right now (pic 7) as some seed heads are still full and would love for you to give them a shake as you walk by. 

#alliumburdickii #ramps #ephemerals #foraging #spring
🌱Ephemeral Week🌱 #4: Erythronium leaves E 🌱Ephemeral Week🌱

#4: Erythronium leaves 

Erythronium (Trout Lily) are another ephemeral that I see widespread in my ramp patches, there’s at least 32 species world-wide, with at least one endangered species in MN (Dwarf Trout Lily). 

They’re a beautiful, delicious plant I eat every year, but I can’t recommend serving them to the general public. Plenty of people say these are edible, but also emetic if eaten in “quantity”. 

I can tell you, at least with E. albidum and E. americanum I’ve eaten, that some people are much more sensitive than others, so if you want to make a salad to serve people, make sure they’re comfortable eating it, and use a few leaves as a garnish. 

Funny enough, I didn’t learn about these from a foraging book. Like knotweed, I learned about them from one of my favorite chefs: Michel Bras, one of the most influential chefs of the turn of the 21 century. 

Any chef that works with wild plants owes a debt to Bras. His book, although a little dated now, still teaches me new things all the time. While flipping through the book I also caught a recipe using tansy flowers 😳 that I’d probably pass on. 

The whitefish crusted with sunflower seeds is a dish of mine from 2012, and an example of how I eat the leaves: a few at a time, as a garnish. 

#troutlily #erythronium #michelbras #ephemerals #foraging
🌱Ephemeral Week🌱 Plant #3: Cutleaf Toothwor 🌱Ephemeral Week🌱

Plant #3: Cutleaf Toothwort (Cardamine concatenata) is another beautiful spring wildflower that loves to grow in the same habitat you’ll see ramps and spring beauty. 

Its small at first, but grows to a worthy size for eating as it flowers. It’s related to cabbage and mustard greens (Brassicaceae) and eating just a few leaves will give you a potent, spicy pop of mustard-family flavor reminiscent of horseradish. 

Eaten in combination with other things, like in a salad, the flavor becomes submissive and you’ll barely know it’s there. 

Some people eat the spicy roots shaped like canine teeth, but for the work I hardly think they’re worth it. 

A great wild spring green for the salad bowl-eat them leaves, tender stem, flowers and all🤤. 

#cutleaftoothwort #cadamineconcatenata #ephemeral #springedibles #foraging #wildfoodlove
🌱Ephemeral Week🌱 Plant #2 is Virginia water 🌱Ephemeral Week🌱

Plant #2 is Virginia waterleaf, and, I’m cheating a bit as it’s semi-ephemeral. The plant comes up in spring and goes to flower, but gives a second harvest of fresh growth in the fall, where other ephemerals I know do not. 

This is a great starter wild green-easy to recognize with the splashes of white on the leaves that may or may not be present. After you learn it though, don’t be surprised if, like me, you eventually pass it up for more delicious greens nearby. 

The plant gets tough quick, and the flavor is..meh, so I usually have small amounts of very young greens in blends of blanched and sautéed mixes. 

My favorite part is the wee flower buds, that, if you get at the right time, can be harvested in decent quantity and are good steamed as they’ll soak up oil sautéed. 

#hydrophyllumvirginianum #waterleaf #foraging #fueledbynature #weedeater
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Footer

Privacy

  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2021 · Foodie Pro & The Genesis Framework

loading Cancel
Post was not sent - check your email addresses!
Email check failed, please try again
Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email.