Foraging Fun #2!

The wonderful thing about foraging is - once people know you're interested, they pass you tips!

During apricot season, I was tipped off by neighbors or family to a total of 9 apricot trees which were free for picking if I wanted any (this on top of those I spied from the public rowadways). In the end I got everything I needed from only 5 of them (two had already been mostly picked off), and my father and I together bottled 52 quarts of apricot nectar and 26 pints of apricot preserves! That's a lot of time picking, and a double lot of time processing/preserving, but it was totally worth it. I'm kind of sorry I didn't get to meet more random people on the street, but I think Craig is probably happier this way. I did get to know some new people in my neighborhood though, and they were all extremely nice.

Apricot nectar, for those of you out of the loop, is not just juice - it also contains processed juicy pulp (but it's not pulpy like orange juice pulp) which thickens it to a more syrupy consistency. It has a tendency to be tart, and so it's best mixed with other juices. It makes a wonderful breakfast blend mixed with orange juice.

To make nectar, first take ripe apricots, split them and remove the pit and any diseased portions. Steam them until well cooked and juicy, about 20-30 minutes. Putting ~2 inches of water in the bottom of a large canning pot full of apricots is sufficient. Once fully cooked, transfer the entire contents of the pot (apricots, juice, and all) through a Victorio Strainer and collect the nectar. Transfer to quart jars and process ~25 minutes in a steaming or boiling water bath to seal.

Without the Victorio Strainer (which is a great canning tool for many foods) you can take an immersion blender to the steamed apricot mash as a next best approximation, but this will leave the skins in, so try this with blemish-free skins.

Apricot preserves follow the same path, but cook until reduced, or thicken with pectin or Clear Jel (the latter doesn't add the flavor that pectin does, leaving a more intense apricot flavor behind.) We like to make apricot preserves with some cranberries (just toss in craisins) and a hint of pineapple as added with crushed pineapple. And, as always, sugar to taste; though we add very little sugar compared to most jam recipes. This leaves a preserves which tastes mostly like fruit, instead of tasting mostly like sugar. Transfer to pint jars and process for ~25 minutes!

Of course, this post coming in late August, you will all have to wait until next year to try it; unless you want to visit =).

Foraging Fun!

So I recently read Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma at the suggestion of several friends. It's a great book which continues the theme from Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, though the perspective is a little different: Michael Pollan takes four different American meals and traces them to their initial roots, whether that be a factory farm or the tree stump next door.

After reading Animal, Vegetable, Mircale, I was inspired to investigate the local CSA offerings and try and incorporate more local choices in my shopping, not just for food but other things as well. The Omnivore's Dilemma ends with a story of a food found almost entirely by foraging, and that's what's been eating at me recently.

There are many ways to forage food from your surroundings, including expeditions as large as hunting for a weekend, down to small things like picking an apple from a local tree as you walk by it. The key is noticing what's going on in the world around you, and taking advantage of it.

Also, to be clear, what foragin isn't about freeloading or garden-snatching; but the truth is that at least in my neighborhood, lots of fresh fruit from trees spoils on the ground because the owners can't use it, or at least not enough of it. Others don't realize the bushes they have out front produce edible fruit, and some just don't have the time to bother. Most people didn't plant the mature trees they have in the yards they inherited with the houses they purchased.

The idea of foraging resonated with me because it wasn't just about saving fruit from rotting (and supplementing your diet with fresh locally grown produce), it was also about forming community, and being aware of your neighbors. After all, you do need to ask if you can harvest some of that neighbor's food; and in some areas dedicated foragers have established connections where contributors can trade some of their fruit for shares of others'.

So when I noted that a beautiful tree at a busy intersection was loaded with apricots, and that many were rotting on the ground, I made the jump from watching to interacting, and knocked on a perfect stranger's door to ask if I could pick some. The gentleman who came to the door was kind enough to overlook the fact that I had interrupted his morning and told me to pick as many as I desired.

I had brought a few grocery sacks in case the answer was yes, and I got to work fairly quickly, though the easily accessible fruit was already gone. I filled two grocery sacks full of 8 lbs each - this wasn't me being greedy, I had plans; my sister-in-law had expressed some desire for apricots, and I wanted to give some to my neighbors as a present.

From there, I loaded up my backpack and started hiking back home (it's ~ 1.5 mi). But I didn't get past two blocks before I decided I might take a detour to my brother's house, as it was getting hot and I wanted to share a portion of the pickings with his family. When I got there I discovered my mistake: picking perfectly ripe apricots is all well and good, but putting them in bags and then moving them around while walking is a recipe for apricot smash. =[

My nephew and I ate a lot of smashed ones so the remaining apricots in the bag might look better for use. When I finally got home myself, I was quick to slice and freeze the bruised ones (they weren't bruised when I picked them, promise!) and sort the ones which were too mashed.

I saved a few in good condition (pictured, at right) to deliver my neighbors - though at least half were not quite ripe; which is why there weren't mashed in the first place. I put them in a paper bag to help the ripening process, and delivered them a day or two later, only to find that they have an apricot tree too! It wasn't ripe, yet, so at least I wasn't overloading them, and even better; they offered to let me pick as many there as I wanted as well. That will give me enough to make and bottle nectar and juice, which is more efficient overall than freezing them.

So that's my first foraging experience - a little bit of courage, a little bit of work, and a lesson learned: pick ripe fruit into shallow boxes so they don't get smashed!

I already have my eye on a few other foraging opportunities, including apples, pears, plums, and chokecherries, and I'll keep you posted as we go along. But already I'm excited to get to know my new neighbors, and I hope they won't think too ill of me when I inquire about their fruiting bushes and trees.

P.S. as of this picking Dick's Market only had Chilean apricots on sale - at $4.99/lb. I'm sure there are local apricots available - I just picked 16 lbs at perfectly ripe! I have continued to ask which of the produce there is local, but I might just step up my interaction a little bit.