I came to Newfoundland for the first time just over four years ago. I can still vividly recall taking the ferry across from Nova Scotia in the late winter, listening to the groaning sounds of the ice around the boat. Within two months of arriving I made my first trip to Bonne Bay, a remote fjord on the west coast of the island. I went to learn about the food system and fisheries in the region as part of a PhD program I was beginning at Memorial University that fall.
Maple syrup conjures up images of towering arboretums in places like Quebec or Vermont, but it’s a little known secret that the rugged and hardy maple trees of Newfoundland make darn fine maple syrup. With nothing more than a half dozen maple trees, some old salt beef containers and a handful of 25 cent metal tree taps, you’re good to go and can expect to end up with over a dozen bottles of hand made maple syrup.
Spectacular vistas, whales breaching, ice bergs floating by, and a foragers paradise. We are blessed with many wilderness areas that offer abundant edible plants. I rarely go on a hike without stopping to have a little taste of this or that. In this post, I will touch upon some of the edibles currently available in our wonderful wilderness.
Thanks to the listing from Seeds of Diversity, I was able to locate a gentleman in Newfoundland who has a great deal of experience growing a wide variety of potatoes here. Last week, I recieved by my set of samples from George, and here's what my benefactor told me about the varieties:
Red Dutch: A very dry, yellow flesh red from Holland in the 1940’s. An excellent potato. Late maturing.
Northern White: A white flesh variety, from Quebec apparently, from the early 1900’s. Very high yield. Good taste.
Before gas and electricity were available for refrigeration, freezing, dehydrating and cooking, an easy method of food preservation, also known as lacto-fermentation, was used by our ancestors all over the world who had crocks full of soured cabbage, cucumber pickles, beets, onions or garlic in the root cellar.
I get a twinge of guilt pouring the brine down the drain from a previously delicious jar of pickled beets or pickles. There has to be something to do with that liquid! It's very concentrated though and not easy to use. Do you re-use brine from pickled things? Here's a recipe for Pickled Beet Juice and Maple Vinaigrette.
It seems like most of North America is a lot closer to summer, while the Avalon is still in early spring mode. That being said, there's a big advantage to this: spring crops can get a second (or third) round before the heat starts. As well, while we may not have had a lot of sun, we've had plenty of rain, which is great for some plants. The question then becomes, what do we do with all the extra? I have one word for you: PICKLING.
A lot of people associate pickling with the fall; beets, cucumbers, late-crop beans and the like. Personally, I think that a lot of spring veggies get even better with a good dose of brine! So, with that, here are a few recipes to capture spring in a bottle of herbs, vinegar and salt.
Asparagus is reaching the end of its season in Eastern parts of Canada, but if you can find some fresh stuff, Pickled Asparagus is a real treat. This recipe, courtesy of WellPreserved.ca (a blog run by a fantastic couple in Toronto) would also work for my favourite pickle in the world, Pickled Garlic Scapes.
Speaking of Pickled Garlic Scapes, Washington's Green Grocer has a very interesting spin on them, including flowers in the final product!
Just about everyone I know has access to at least one rhubrarb plant, which isn't surprising since it grows like a weed! I love the tart flavour of rhubarb, so I'm very curious to try giving it a dose of brine!
And finally, need to clear out some of those turnip greens before they go bad? Why not give try this Pickled Mustard Greens recipe a try? The basic principle would be the same, and you'd have a really interesting side dish for spicy stir fries or BBQ skewers.
