#pascal baudar

[foragerskitchen]

Pascal Baudar

Interesting looking seeds of the week: Common Mallow - Malva neglecta.

Malva neglecta can be found in several continents, it's commonly known as common mallow or cheese weed. Its leaves and flowers can be eaten raw or cooked. When cooked, they can be used similarly to spinach, added to soups, stews, or sautéed as a side dish. The flowers of Malva neglecta can also be added to salads for a colorful touch or used as an edible garnish.

In addition to its culinary uses, Malva neglecta has been used in traditional medicine for its soothing and anti-inflammatory properties, particularly for skin and digestive system ailments.

The seed pods of Malva neglecta, sometimes referred to as "cheeses," due to their shape resembling a small wheel of cheese, can be eaten raw or cooked. They have a mild, pleasant flavor and can be added to salads or used as a snack. In some regions, they are pickled or used as a caper substitute. But, I decided to go a little further and break the seed pods once dried to investigate possible culinary uses for the seeds.

They're super interesting looking, like little barrels with ridges, I didn't collect that many last year but I've enough to start a couple of experiments. Of course, I'm in the progress of sprouting some but I have the feeling that one of the best use will be to grind the dried seeds and make an interesting flour.

[allium-girl-anthologies]

True flavors of Southern California

Lamb chops cooked in homemade Manzanita cider with California Juniper berries, sagebrush, bay leaves, black sage, clover salt, potatoes and onions. Side dish made of wild watercress and roasted buckwheat flowers.

[allium-girl-anthologies]

Wild Seed Vinaigrette

1 ounce red onion or shallots (chopped) 1/2 jalapeno or similar pepper (chopped) 2 teaspoons pickled wild seeds 1 tablespoon homemade Dijon mustard (black mustard seeds) 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 1 teaspoon Italian herbs (I use my own blend of wild spices) 3 tablespoons elderberry wine vinegar or red wine vinegar 2 tablespoons water Salt to taste

[allium-girl-anthologies]

Lamb's quarter quinoa (Chenopodium album)

1. Place ½ cup dry seeds in a quart jar 2. Fill the jar with hot water for 15 minutes – stir from time to time. 3. Remove the water, transfer the seeds into a bowl, and add fresh warm water. You should have some decent foaming going on. 4. Keep changing the water until you don’t have any more foaming on the surface. 5. Transfer the seeds into a pot and add water. In this case, you’re NOT using the ratio of 2 parts water and 1 part quinoa which is the typical recipe for quinoa. We just want to boil the lamb’s quarter seeds for 20 to 25 minutes so you want enough water. I used around 6-7 cups of water for ½ cups seeds. 6. Drain and place the cooked seeds into a closed jar. Place in the fridge where it will keep for 4-5 days. NOTE: Don’t expect the end result to be like commercial quinoa, the lamb’s quarter seeds are much smaller and still somewhat crunchy but cooking them this way makes them quite edible with no bitterness.

[sioltach]

evening primrose root, palo verde beans

[wild-gastronomy]

Pine Needle Soda

"Super delicious and loaded with vitamin C. I've made it with Eastern white pine needles in Vermont and all kinds of other pines from Oregon to California.

All true pines are "edible" so you can chew on a few needles to get an idea of the flavors before trying such ferment. My favorite is using pinyon pine needles which are plentiful around me. Some fir trees such as white or balsam fir had great tangerine flavors too."

[wild-gastronomy]

Wild Radish Pods and Seeds

[wild-gastronomy]

Cattail, one of those delicious forgotten food which can be found pretty much all over the world, mostly in the Northern Hemisphere. In some areas of North America and Canada, it can be considered invasive. Every part of the plant has a use from roots (to make flour) to shoots, flowers and leaves (basketry). There are great videos on YouTube if you are interested. I mostly use the young shoots, my technique is to push aside the largest 2 leaves then grab the inner part of the stem close to the ground/water and pull gently. It looks like a leek but the flavor profile is completely different, it taste a bit like a nutty cucumber. The plant is an excellent source of starch, in the old days the roots were dried then pounded to make flour. Cattail pollen was also collected as a thickener in soup or sauces and additive to flour. I mostly use the shoots which can be eaten raw or added to salads but are truly delicious sauteed, fermented or pickled. From experience, some people can experience a bit of a slight and temporary scratchy throat eating raw cattail so I prefer to cook or pickle it (fermented or preserved in vinegar).

Pascal Baudar