Small Bunch of Gorse Flowers and Wild Garlic

Yesterday we went for a walk in the woods not far from where we live.  Its times like this when I wish even more that I had a dog that I would take with me, ah I can wish - one day.

I came back with a small handful of edible flowers.  First gorse flowers.  Ever since I learned they were edible, I wanted to forage for some, but I only ever saw  them on the polluted motorway.  So you can imagine, I was quite pleased to find them in a relatively clean environment. I've got quite a few recipes bookmarked to make: gorse flower syrup, gorse flower ice-cream, gorse flower cordial, gorse flower wine and much more, but this time it will be something relatively simple, as I did only pick a small posy. 

Then later that same afternoon, we went for a drive to a place where I know where wild garlic grows.  I picked only a little, its a little late now really - but I did bring back a small bagful to make something simple.  

My blog has loads of wild garlic inspiration, but I would like to share a handful such as 
Wild Garlic Pesto Pasta
Scottish Wild Garlic Oatcakes
Wild Weed Tortilla

This time round though, I will be making something quite simple - Wild Garlic Hummus.  
I am sharing this small harvest albeit one foraged and not from my garden with Daphne's Dandelions who hosts Harvest Mondays.  

Savoury Nettle, Ground Elder and Spinach 'Eccles' Cakes

I've written about Eccles cakes on my blog in the past, but for those of you may not be familiar with Eccles cakes - I am happy to write about them again.  Eccles cakes are a particular kind of English cake. Individual flaky pastries filled with either currants or raisins, glazed and coated in crunchy sugar grains.   Eccles cakes are believed to have originated in a little place called Eccles, formerly within the Lancashire boundary but this has been debated by some food historians who argue that similar types of sweet patties were being made elsewhere in England.  To add to this, these sweet patties are known by different names. I’ve known them to be called Squashed Fly Cake, and even a Fly's Graveyard.  I’ve been told that they also exist in Scotland, but in a very different guise: simply as a fruit slice.  Something else of interest though, the word ‘eccles’ actually means church and is derived from the Greek word ‘Ecclestia' - Interesting, don't you think?!  

Well here is a savoury take on the sweet variety: made with Stilton cheese and my hedgerow scrummage of nettles and ground elder.  I also stirred in some spinach to the mix, only because I had some in the fridge.  The other reason, I highlight spinach it, if you don't have the opportunity to forage for some free wild foodie greens like nettles, wild garlic, mustard garlic or ground elder - then spinach will be a good alternative.    Anyway, back to this particular  savoury 'Eccles' cake - the pastry was light and flaky, (sometimes ready made comes in hand - yes even for me); and the filling was creamy and salty from the cheese, and silky from the sauteed robust greens. 

My preference for eating these savoury 'Eccles' cakes if definitely warm, but they would work well cold too, especially at room temperature. So perfect for taking to work for lunch or summer time picnics for those of you blessed with sunshine.  Talking of weather, the rain has been pelting down all day and the skies have been proper dark, even though its day-time, its feels like the evening.

Seasonal May Recipes from A2K

Today you will have to forgive me for what is a bit of a cheats entry, but I want to showcase some seasonal dishes that I have made in the past that I think deserve to have the limelight put on them once again, especially for those of you who may be new to my blog and may have missed out on them originally.  

As well as the many Wild Garlic recipes, such as these Wild Garlic Oatcakes.  Here are some others that I made in the month of May years gone.   

If you can't find wild garlic in your area, you will undoubtedly find wild stinging nettle.  Nettle is growing everywhere at the moment, one of my favourite rice dishes was this  Stinging Nettle Risotto. 

For those of you blessed to have your own home grown asparagus, well my husband will envy you very much.  I like many people will have to wait for it to appear on the grocery shelf and then hope to make this beautiful Asparagus Flecked Tart.

If your not that keen on cabbage, I encourage you to try this recipe.  It truly converted me.  It has become one of my favourite meals:  Stir Fried Cabbage with Chilli and Ginger. 

This simple Asparagus and Radish Pasta Salad will make you and your loved one swoon. 

Rhubarb and Ginger Muffins in some of my treasured and cherished teacups and saucers.

Rhubarb, Rose Petals and White Chocolate Flapjacks cut out in a heart shape.  A bit fiddly, but worth it for presentation.

Rhubarb and Rosemary Cookies - a culinary experiment that worked delightfully.  These days I make a cake with both ingredients, I will share that Rosemary and Rhubarb cake with you in the very near future - it also happens to be vegan, the cake that is - not these cookies.

Pink Rhubarb Sorbet - one of the very first Rhubarb recipes to feature on my blog.

And finally, many of you will have recently seen my mini vegan Parsnip, Raisin and Walnut cakes, but well before I started making them I had made a little known and wonderful tart called Rosemary, Lemon and Parsnip Tart.  Its a sweet tart.  I plan on remaking it and introducing it to some unsuspecting diners.  I hope they like it as much as the Parsnip, Raisin and Walnut cakes.  

Wild Weed Tortilla

Last year I think I overdosed on wild garlic, not literally - just in a culinary sense.  I dubbed my two week wild garlic culinary binge as The Wild Garlic Chronicles, even cheekily Wild Garlic Girl.  So as you can imagine, I have been a little hesitant foraging for some this year, but whilst driving through a narrow lane a week or so back, I spotted some growing and decided to return to forage for some.  On return the wild garlic was shooting up its edible flower buds like firework sparklers.   

Its funny, around this time I struggled to find many Wild Garlic recipes in cookbooks and on the Internet, but this year - wow - there has been an explosion both the Internet and blogosphere and you can find lots of ideas and inspiration for your foraged wild garlic.  Other than the usual pestos, soups, breads, pasta dishes, potato cakes and egg dishes like frittata, souffles and quiches, you will find it in scones, quinoa patties to deep or shallow fried fritters, added to 'curry style' dishes, as well as enhancing traditional recipes like basic pastry, coleslaw, mayonnaise, aioli and salsa verdes .  Anyway, this was going to be a plain old 'Wild Garlic Tortilla', but having briefly visited my Dads allotment a couple of days ago I picked some wild stinging nettle and in my own garden some young dandelion leaves, so I decided to add some of these to the tortilla.  I wanted a little more texture too, so in place of my usual garden peas, I also threw in some cooked chickpeas.

I garnished the completed Wild Weed Tortilla with wild garlic flowers for optional extra heat, for those who dared for a little extra bite. 

Foraging Eyes

Those of you who read my blog regularly and know me of sorts, will know that I am keen novice forager.  Last year I went stinging nettle crazy, this year wild garlic mad.  Yet, I have so much to learn.  I would so dearly love to one day spend a weekend (or even a week) with a professional forager learning not just about edible wild weeds on the land, but also those that grow on the beach and sea such as seaweed.  Ah maybe one day that opportunity will come my way.

Back to my reality, sadly I have not been able to forage as much as I would like; as circumstances in my life are making me hesitant.  For a start, D doesn't want us to be transporting excess and fragile glass jars full of edible delights for when we eventually move down to Wales.  The greedy woman in me would happily ignore him, but the fact is that we also have little money to buy glass jars, and there are only so much glass jar and bottle recycling a couple can do.  So I reserve these foraging pleasures for next year.  Instead I thought I'd share with you some of my foraging forays, as well as free wild food I've been seeing around me for easy picking.

A couple of years ago,  I found elder flowers and made elderflower champagne, sadly this year I have watched the elderflowers  and the elderberries shrink before my eyes.

I saw these blackberries in North Wales, the brambles I've stumbled upon in Scotland, including those growing in my garden have been a disappointment.  They are either shrivelled or virtually non existent due to the harsh constant rain hitting them.  So it looks like no Blackberry Jam or Apple and Blackberry Crumble for me this year.

I had the opportunity to harvest dog rose and rose hips for rosehip jelly and rosehip syrup, but like I said I hardly have any jars, so sadly I will just have to watch them turn to mush. 

I think this is hawthorn berries; or is it rowan berry?  Anyway, I see both of them hanging like Christmas tree decorations - but have to walk on by.

 This excited me the most - its sea buckthorn.   

I had my first ever buckthorn shot last year - its sure is zingy and powerful in the mouth.

Its not all bad though, I found some sloe berries.  This time a lot more than my find last year that made a very weak sloe gin.  Not this time. The sloe berries are tucked in my parents freezer in Wales, awaiting for me to move there and then transform them into sloe gin. 

I mentioned in an earlier post, that the apple tree in my garden this year has been battered by the cruel wind and rain.  There are zero apples in the tree that when the punky waxwings and fairfield arrive, they won't hang around for long and fly on by.  Fortunately its not been that bad for me.  Although I didn't get any home grown apples for jam, I did forage for some mis-shapen cooking apples.  These have already greedily been consumed in the form of Apple Cider Cake (which I have yet to share), as well as Cinnamon Apple Shortcakes.

And finally I cannot forget those eating apples from my fathers allotment plot; and pears from my mothers garden.  Talking of pears...I have seen some growing not that far from where we presently live, but I don't think I will get to them - chances are the wind will have knocked them down before I get a chance to forage for some on my return.