One of my fascinations during Spring are the fiddlehead ferns. I learned somewhere that people used to harvest and eat them. Now before we get crazy with that idea, let me share what I have recently learned.
Not all ferns are safely edible. Bummer! The "fiddlehead" is just the term used to describe the fronds as they emerge and before they unfurl. My fascination began years ago as these delicate looking plants showed me how they brave ice and storms and winter winds to emerge through the leaf litter and proclaim Spring!
I bought one plant when we lived in our first house and it has borne countless other plants. We moved some to our new house and they have spread to give the shady back edge of our home a lacy fringe during summer.
For details, recipes, ideas, etc. see:
http://www.fiddle-heads.com/
In my imagination, walking early spring trails in the Smokey Mountains I see mountain women gathering fiddlehead to steam for dinner. In today's on-line presentations they are used to top pizza, in quiche and run $18.00 to $20.00 per pound!
Leave it to a great chef to do this lovely presentation. Looks like nasturtium, fiddleheads, avocado, greens... hm, maybe viola petals?
Check the local Whole Foods near you net spring and see what you can create!
Love the imagination this photo stirs!
Posted with Blogsy
what fun...
ReplyDeleteIn New Zealand, the fiddleheads are symbols of new life, new creation for the Maori.
ReplyDeleteDan