Sumac - The Wild Lemonade!

Have you heard of this incredibly useful, tasty berry? Chances are you've heard of poison sumac. Here is a photo of Poison Sumac:

Note the white berries. There are many types of Sumac, and this is the only toxic one. All the other Sumac specimens have clusters of red, fuzzy berries.

Any Sumac with red fruit is safe, edible, and if gathered at peak, delicious!

The berries are most often dried and used as a tart spice in many Indian and Mediterranean dishes, but what I will be sharing today is a recipe for a sort of home-made wild lemonade called sumac-ade! This drink is delicious, easy to prepare, fun to gather, and loaded with Vitamin C.

Preparation of the beverage is simple. The first step is to harvest the berries. The large clusters easy to collect. I usually just snap off the twig that bears the cluster by bending it quickly, although some people might feel more comfortable use pruning shears or a knife. You want to get the berries when they are dark red and fully mature, so that they have fully developed their tart flavor, but before the rain has had the opportunity to wash the flavor out.  A dark red/purple coloration usually indicates that the flavor of the fruit has developed fully; yet some of the best clusters I've tasted were light pink. As with any wild fruit, taste will vary from location to location, and even within the same plant. 

A potential mistake is to harvest the berry heads before they are ripe, in which case they will produce an unpleasantly bitter brew. More commonly, the problem is that the berries are collected long after their flavor has been washed out by rain. 

Take your Sumac clusters, place them in a pot, pour cold water over them, then crush them up a little with a spoon or potato masher and then let the pitcher sit in a cool place for a while. Pouring boiling or hot water over the berries will cause the drink to become bitter. Always use cool water. The longer the berries infuse, the stronger the drink will be. When the flavor is to your liking, just strain the drink through a cheesecloth to remove seeds and hairs. Sumac-ade is pleasantly tart with a light pink color. Add sugar or honey to taste. I use Agave.

All in all, however, the sumac is a wonderful tree, deserving of much more attention for culinary use. Unfortunately, the fact that most people associate sumac as being poisonous doesn't help it's reputation. That does leave more for me, but either way there's plenty of sumac to go around. Why not try some this summer? :)

 

Recipe: Savory Pumpkin & Roasted Veggie Bisque Soup

Just whipped this recipe up while experimenting in the kitchen this past week, and it's proven to be quite the hit! This soup is savory, creamy, with a hint of sweetness and a slight kick.

You will need:
Olive Oil
4 Cups Pureed Pumpkin
6 Cups Coconut Milk
Large Handful of Dandelion Greens, washed. (If you are not the foraging type, substitute with your favorite green)
1/8 cup chopped cilantro
1 Red Pepper
2 Cups Mushrooms
1 Large Onion
6 Cloves Garlic
1/2 Teaspoon Nutmeg

Spices to taste (Very Important! This is what makes the soup delicious!)
Spicy Curry
Garam Masala
Sea Salt
Ground Pepper

1. In large pot, bring coconut milk, pureed pumpkin, and dandelion greens to a boil. Once boiled, bring to a simmer.
2. Chop onion & red pepper and mince garlic cloves. Heat over medium heat in skillet with 2 Tbsp Olive Oil.
3. Once onion and peppers are soft and beginning to brown, add mushrooms. When mushrooms are brown and vegetables are roasted (slightly browned), add to soup pot
4. Let soup simmer. Add cilantro. Now comes the tricky part. I very rarely measure my spices. As individual taste may vary, so will preference of spices. Continually add dashes of each spice (Except the nutmeg). Taste periodically and continue to add dashes of spices until soup develops desired levels of savory and spicy.
5. Continue to stir the soup periodically. After soup has simmered at least 15 minutes, add nutmeg. Stir and simmer 5 more minutes. Turn off heat, stir and serve!
6. Garnish with fresh red pepper, dandelion blossoms, fresh cilantro, or whatever you like! This is a very eastern inspired soup. If you or your party guests desire adventure for their palate, this soup is for you!

Foraging Recipe: Lilac Jam!

April showers bring May flowers. Some of the most beautiful of May's flowers include lilacs. Surely you know the fragrant flower clusters by name, sight, and scent..but did you know they make a kick-ass Jam? Lilacs are the very essence of spring. Here is a recipe that will allow you to bottle up the taste of spring for months to come. 

The ingredients you'll need:
 2 cups, loosely packed lilac blossoms, without green parts & stems
Juice of 1 fresh lemon
3/4 cup water
2 1/2 cups sugar
3/4 cup water (a second time)
1 pkg. Sure-Jel pectin

Directions: Put 3/4 cup water and the lilac blossoms in a blender and blend well. Add the lemon juice and notice how the lilac paste turns a richer purple as soon as the lemon juice hits the dull purple paste. Add the sugar and blend again to dissolve. Next, stir the package of pectin into the second 3/4 cup water in a sauce pan and bring it to a boil, continuing to boil hard for 1 minute. Pour the hot pectin into the blender with the lilac paste. Blend again and pour into jars or small storage containers. Let cool, then cover with lids and store in the freezer. The jam will turn a deeper purple as it sets up. You can dip out the jam whenever you want some.

And, it tastes like spring, too! This will keep in the freezer for about 1 year! :)