Do prickly tumbleweeds pile on your house or nearby fence lines? If so, dinner may be close by. Before the spines firm up, you can boil the green shoots and tender branch tips of the developing plants for a mild, spinach-like green. Our prickly tumbleweeds belong to plants … [Read more...]
Eating nodding thistle stalks
On Saturday I stopped by my sister-in-law’s house, where I was persuaded to help weed her hillside of invasive nodding thistles (Carduus nutans). I didn’t mind because several days of rain have left the ground soft with moisture, and nodding thistle happens to be a good wild … [Read more...]
Japanese knotweed season
I’m breaking my fast this morning with stewed Japanese knotweed and peaches over Greek yogurt, topped with homemade granola. It’s a surprisingly nice combination—and beyond that, it’s very simple to make. I used last year’s harvest—which I had chopped and stewed with sugar and … [Read more...]
Snowboarding, Nettles, & Jerusalem Artichoke Bouyah
My friend’s husband tells tales of growing up in northern Wisconsin next to the Menominee Nation, where as a boy he played with the kids on the reservation. When they got hungry, they’d head to whichever family’s house was hosting that week’s “bouyah," a Midwestern tradition … [Read more...]
Seaweeding the Eastern Shoreline
My parents shot me quizzical looks last summer when I announced my plan to gather seaweed in Long Island Sound, off the Connecticut coast. Not only would I collect, but also dry the seaweed at their house so I could take it back to Colorado with me for cooking experiments. I … [Read more...]
