Foraging

Hey peeps! I just wanted to talk a little about something that seems to be very 'au courant' in fancy kitchens these days: FORAGING.

I, myself, have always loved to forage. I think it's awesome to just pick something off a tree and eat it. Living in Ontario, however, does not lend itself to mighty fine foraging (or so I thought), so I have been making up for lost time in Bermuda. Contrary to popular belief, there are not banana trees everywhere that you can pick from. BUT, alot of people have banana trees in their back yard and if you ask nicely, they give you bananas! FOR FREE! Fresh crazy wild BANANAS. Yum! Something that is everywhere right now and equally as yummy are loquats. This little beautiful fruit is a cross between a grape and a pear in taste (I find). They can be used for all kinds of fun stuff like jams and jellies, I've had loquat cake and a loquat dessert (mixed with whipped cream!) and, of course, they can just be picked and eaten right off the tree - which is by far the best way I have had them! I think I'll go grab a couple from the tree in my yard right now...

Mmmmmmm yum!


Yummy Loquats

They have a large stone in them, but it's easily removed!

Walking along the railway trail (which is a large trail that is pretty much left to grow naturally) you can find TONS of stuff. Pawpaws (which is papaya btw, only not ripe - did you know that a pawpaw is classed as a vegetable, nd then when it ripens it is classified as a fruit? Strange but true!) Anyhoooo I'm not a giant fan of pawpaws, so I don't forage for them, but they're there! Locals will peel them, chop 'em, boil them, then put them in a casserole dish with butter and breadcrumbs and bake them until soft.

I am having a tea right now that I made with allspice leaves that I foraged and dried and scrunched up and it is the first time I am having it, and I already know I will miss it! :( I wish the internets were scratch and sniff because HOLY this tea smells SOOOOOOO COMFORTING and YUMMY! It has a mild taste, but a very robust taste (so you wouldn't want it to be any stronger!) I think I will have to go forage a huge bunch of these leaves and dry them and ship them home!



To make this tea as local as I could, I plopped in some local honey from Bee Keeper #5! Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!


(See my coolio tea infuser that I scooped up in the Vancouver BC Market?)

Also, remember a while ago, I talked about Bermuda oranges ? Well, that tree has since EXPLODED in blossoms so hopefully it'l have a ton of fruit in the next season (even though I won't be here to steal it!) I swear, Bermudians have no idea what they've got!



In the book "Earth to Table" they talk about foraging in Ontario A TON! And then they give you recipes on how to use the stuff. The funniest thing in there, that I cannot wait to try are Fiddleheads. Not only do they have a hilarious name, they look hilarious too!

Now, while foraging on the internet for a pic of fiddleheads, I totally found a new interesting website to peruse, so, off I go!

Have a great day everyone!!!