Every August, you can find black cherry trees covered in drooping clusters of shiny ripe fruit, like thousands of threaded beads. These cherries are smaller and more tart than the domestic varieties.  They grow in elongated racemes and appear to be more like berries on little stalks.  However, you will find that each “berry” contains an unmistakable cherry pit.

They are not as sweet as regular cherries, but their tannic tartness makes them ideal for making jam, jelly, syrups and wine.  However, despite their being considered unpalatable, I really enjoy their sweet/sharp flavor straight from the tree, and will happily spend time munching away on them as a refreshing snack, whilst out walking.

The bark of the young tree is used for its medicinal properties, mainly as a cough remedy and sedative.  However, avoid eating the leaves, as they contain cyanide, which reaches toxic levels once they are crushed or begin to wilt.  Many cattle and horses have died from ingesting them.  The pits are also poisonous, although they have to be crushed in order to release their cyanide content, so fear not, if you accidentally swallow one or two. They’ll just pass on through.

Unless you have a cherry pitter, removing all those pits can prove to be very time consuming.  You can try rolling the fruit between two cutting boards to loosen up the pits, but this can be very messy.  All in all, you won’t get a lot of fruit at the end of the day, so I’d recommend having some apples on hand.  I’d recommend crab apples, but they are just as labor intensive as the cherries.

If you can pit sufficient cherries to make a cherry and apple pie, you won’t regret it.  However, these wild cherries are not as sweet as regular cherries, and may require more sugar in the recipe (according to your taste preference).  Pitted wild cherries make great accent fruits in fruit salads, green salads,  and chicken and tuna salads.  I’ve used them to make a sweet and tart sauce for fish, which I’m sure would work just as well with chicken & pork.  For a wicked dessert idea, try soaking them in rum or brandy for a while, then pour them over ice cream or even waffles with some whipped cream.

We recently made some venison kaftas for a wild foods feast.  Fortunately, black cherries were in season, so we made a black cherry sauce to accompany them.  It was a big hit.

If you are lucky enough to be able to harvest some black cherries, try making a sauce.  The recipe is fairly simple and easy to make. Depending on how much you reduce the sauce, you can make a useful black cherry syrup, which can be added to seltzer for a refreshing drink or taken straight as an very effective treatment for coughs and bronchitis.

See Lisa Caccamise’s recipe here

The post This Season’s Wild Edible Plant: Black Cherries appeared first on Suburban Foragers.

serves 2

1/4 cup young mugwort leaves, packed and chopped

1 teaspoon herb de provence

4 organic, free range eggs

1 T fat of choice (olive/butter, bacon, coconut. . .)

pinch of sea salt

1. Heat a heavy bottomed 8 inch skillet to medium high heat.

2. When hot, add fat to the pan and swirl to coat bottom.

3. Meanwhile, whisk eggs in a bowl and add to the pan.

4. Sprinkle mugwort and herb de provence evenly over eggs and let sit, untouched for about 2 minutes, or until the sides are cooked and the inside is starting to set.

5. If your herb mixture does not include salt, add some to the pan.

6. Carefully flip the frittata over and cook the second side for another 1-2 minutes.

7. Serve hot or room temperature.

Golden Beets with Winter Cress, Proscuitto and Goat Cheese

Serves 2

2 medium golden or red beets, leaves and stems removed

4 slices proscuitto, cut in half

1 small onion, chopped

1 cup winter cress leaves, roughly chopped

fat of choice (olive/butter, bacon, coconut. . .)

sea salt and pepper to taste

1 oz goat cheese, crumbled

1. Heat oven to 400. Rub beets with olive oil and lay on a parchment lined baking pan and cover with second pan or parchment and then foil. Roast for 30-60 minutes, checking after 30 minutes. The beets should give easily when fingers put pressure on them.

2. Remove beets and let cool until they can be handled easily with ungloved hands.

3. Alternatively, peel beets and slice to medium thick slices. Add water and sea salt to a large skillet and bring to a boil. Add beet slices and simmer for anywhere from 10-12 minutes, or until beets can be easily pierced with a fork. Remove to a paper towel lined platter and set aside.

4. Meanwhile, heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 T fat of choice and then add the proscuitto slices, spreading out to flatten and making sure they are not crowded in the pan. Cook each side about 1 minute, or until shriveled and starting to brown. Remove and set aside.

5. Add more fat to the pan, if necessary, and then add onion, cooking about 5 minutes.

6. Add greens and cook until wilted. Season with sea salt and pepper to taste.

7. Add half the goat cheese to the greens and stir in until the cheese starts to melt.

8. To plate: Place 4 beet slices on plate or platter, top with greens, 1 slice of prosciutto and a sprinkling of goat cheese.

   
   

   Field Garlic Dip with Crudite

   Serves 4

   about 1/2 cup of field garlic bulbs

   Field garlic tops, chopped for garnish

   1/2 teaspoon dried onion

   1/2 teaspoon dried garlic

   1/4 teaspoon celery seed

   1/4 teaspoon black pepper

   8 ounce sour cream

   ** Note that the dried herbs measurements are just a guide. Use more or less depending on taste.

   1. Mix all together in a medium bowl and serve with your choice of raw vegetables such as carrots, cauliflower, celery, radish, peppers. . . etc. . . .

   
   

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