Week of Wild Food - Day Three |
by Becky Lerner | |
26 May 2009 | |
![]() Breakfast this morning was tea made from pine needles, ground ivy, pineapple weed and wild rose blossoms.Thumbnail: Cleavers are named for their habit of hooking on to anything they touch. When brewed in a tea, they act medicinally as a lymphatic tonic. I snacked on some purslane leaves I found growing on my street (recommended by a reader named Jim from Washington state), which had a bland but not unpleasant flavor. Lunch was broth made from stinging nettles. For dinner, I boiled a tea made of blackberry buds, pine needles, rose petals, ground ivy and a whole lot of cleavers. I also had more stinging nettles broth and baked burdock roots.
![]() Burdock grows abundantly. The root is tasty when baked and is considered a blood purifier. I have to go back on what I said about nettles -- I totally got stung a bunch today. I think the trick to handling them without getting hurt is to pinch the upper few inches of the stem (or a leaf) and pull upward to remove it. It seems that a number of folks have noted that nettles sting more often when you brush by them rather than when you deliberately grab them with a firm touch. Check out a video of me on the local ABC news channel, KATU!
![]() The rough outer skin of the burdock root can be peeled to reveal a more tender, cream-colored interior. I am totally considering fishing right now. On my to-do list for tomorrow is to try making coffee from chicory roots. I'm also interested in digging up dandelion roots and thistle roots. And fishing, though since I've never gone before in Portland, I'll need to find a knowledgeable friend to show me some good spots. I love to hear from readers! Contact me at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it "Wild Girl" Becky Lerner is a journalist who writes about foraging and primitive skills at www.FirstWays.com.
![]() Purslane, commonly found growing in the cracks of sidewalks, is high in omega-3 fatty acids. Living on Foraged Wild Foods for a Solid Week in the City * * * * *
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