Where the wild foods are

I love spring in Ontario. Everything around me has just ended it's winter slumber, ready to burst forth for another green summer. The ground is wet, and the woods have an earthy, loamy scent. When I'm brave enough to traverse the mud, I'll stand there for a few minutes, just smelling the earth.

Our first foods start showing up at this time of year, including some foragers favourites. There are three that I get particularly excited for which grow wild in my area: ramps, fiddleheads, and morels.

Ramps
Commonly referred to as Spring Leeks at the market, also known as: Wild Leek, Ramson, or Spring Onion. As it's Latin name indicates - Allium tricoccum - it has a garlic-like flavour which makes it a nice addition to spring meals. Ramps have long, broad green leaves, a burgundy coloured stem and a white scallion-like bulb. The entire thing is edible. I enjoy chopping it up and adding it to a sautee, or grilling them to include in a vegetable dish. You'll find them on wooded slopes, and probably need a tool to help dig them up whole.

Fiddleheads
Fiddleheads are young ferns which have not yet uncoiled. Commonly found near water in wooded areas in early spring. I've seen debate about which kind of ferns you can eat. Most sites will indicate you should stick to the Ostrich fern only, however there is a family of ferns very similar and before they are uncoiled, it's difficult tell if it's an Ostrich fern or not. I get my fiddleheads from a local Mennonite farmer. When I asked him how you can tell which are edible, he said he'd pick any from that particular family. You don't want the ferns that have started to uncoil, as they tend to be bitter. You need to wash them well, and remove the brown papery cover from them. Everyone has their preferred way to cook these. I like to boil them until they are fairly well done, which helps to make sure I've gotten all the grit out of the uncoiled fern and makes them easier to digest (you can't eat these raw). Then I'll sautee them in garlic and butter. Delish!

Morels
I went camping one day and spotted a bunch of morels. Because I was completely inexperienced with wild mushrooms at the time, I just took a picture and left them behind. Had I known for sure, we'd have dined on a classic wild dish. Morels have a deep, woodsy flavour to them, and they are absolutely irresistible to foragers. You can find people who will sell them, and they aren't particularly cheap but they are completely worth it. Since they often grow in sandy areas, you have to clean them carefully, or you'll find yourself dining on the tastiest grit ever. You can't over clean these - trust me. Start by putting them into a dry towel while they are dry, then shaking them around in there to try to knock dirt out of them. Next soak them in salt water for quite a while (will also help to get rid of critters up inside). I nibble a piece to test the grittiness. When I finally get them clean I often slice them in half lengthwise, and sautee them in butter then eat them as is. Dried morels are good, easier to use because they are cleaned already, but nothing beats a fresh morel.

Because they are wild foods, please do not go foraging if you are inexperienced. I buy all three of these foods at my local market. I'm asking them and learning about the foods, so hopefully I can forage for my own one day.

What the Wild Meal was
Of course, with this selection of wild treats we had to have a wild meal. I sauteed the ramps and fiddleheads with garlic and butter for a large, green sidedish. The morels were sauteed and presented alone, I think first morels of the year need to be appreciated for what they are. Lastly, to accompany our wild veggies, we had local wild boar sausages that we picked up from a local meat store.

Our local, wild, spring-time meal.