Going to seed
Most people foraged during the Depression — it’s just since the (Second World) war that people stopped. I once saw a lady walking along a vacant lot gathering wild greens. Weeds are really just another edible plant that grows very fast in areas most gardeners don’t want or are unable to contain. However weeds like purslane, dandelion, and others can provide a very nutrient rich food. Their primary mission is to be the “pioneers” with deep tap roots to prepare the soil for others after. These tap roots bring up very necessary minerals and vitamins that other plants will need for survival. The third grade class at Wilshire Crest Farms are learning about weeds and their benefits to the earth, and people.
Try some of this delicious recipe with weeds!
Foraged Salad
Roxane Robillard says that with pesticides and herbicides now banned, people should be able to find salad makings literally in their own backyard. But she urges people to pick and eat only if they are sure they are correctly identifying the plant and know that it’s edible. “We never eat anything without researching it first.”
Makes: 6 servings
12 small leaves milkweed
12 leaves pigweed
12 leaves daisy
12 leaves wild lettuce
12 small leaves dandelion
12 leaves wild mustard
12 leaves shepherd’s purse
12 pods pepper grass
12 strands of chickweed, chopped
12 leaves lamb’s quarters
12 flowers red or white clover
12 wild violets
12 strands creeping charlie
12 yellow wood sorrel
12 leaves plantain
12 strands of purslane
Vinaigrette
(Makes enough for many salads)
1 cup (250 mL) red wine vinegar
2 cups (500 mL) olive oil
1 garlic clove crushed
1 strand of fresh rosemary
1 hot cayenne pepper crushed
1 tbsp (15 mL) peppercorns
1. Toss clean leaves and flowers together in a bowl.
2. Whisk all dressing ingredients together and store, refrigerated, in a bottle. Serve separately at the table.
– See more at: http://www.ottawacitizenstyle.com/category/food-and-drink/delicacies-from-your-backyard/#sthash.ExRZJai1.dpuf
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