Eating Wild
wild ramps
I’d love to spend a day with Samuel Thayer, author of The Forager’s Harvest. I’d magnify my knowledge of what the woods has to offer in food tenfold or more. I’ll give you some ideas of what I eat in the woods, but I am by no means telling you to do the same. You should get specific instruction, read books, ask questions and really make sure you know what you are looking for.
Even something easy, like a blueberry, can be confusing if you aren’t totally familiar with what the wild plant looks like. Most people have only ever seen them in a plastic container at the grocery store. In the wild, there are more than one berry that looks like a blueberry. A close cousin, we call huckleberry, is also delicious. And once you know what they both look like you’ll really enjoy nibbling during your travels. But until then, always err on the side of caution because there are plenty of other round blue berries in the woods that are poisonous.
Here are some of my favorites, some cooked and some raw. Blueberry, huckleberry, strawberry, blackberry, raspberry, apples, asparagus, fiddleheads, cattail roots, wild carrots, morel mushrooms, shaggy manes, puffballs, ramps, and mint leaves to chew on.
