Jamanda
|
AlexandersI've picked, what I'm pretty sure are Alexander shoots, but just to check - should they be pretty strong smelling and with reddish veins running through the white bottom of the stem, which is semi-circular like a celery stem , before joining up to become a tube higher up?
|
cab
|
Re: AlexandersGot to be careful with umbellifers. Picture?
|
Slim
|
Apiaceae nowadays! 
|
Jamanda
|
Re: Alexanders | cab wrote: | | Got to be careful with umbellifers. Picture? |
I knew you'd say that! Hang on!
|
Jamanda
|
Click to see full size image
|
PeteS
|
They certainly look like young Alexander leaves, but all the stems of the ones that I have found have been like a hollow tube right down to the ground. I'm not very good at doing an ID from pictures. Cab will certainly have a better idea
|
cab
|
| cpg03 wrote: | | Apiaceae nowadays! |
Oooh, laad-di-daah  You'll be having a bash at me for 'cruciferae' next 
But yes, you're right, Apiaceae.
|
cab
|
| Jamanda wrote: |
Click to see full size image |
Looks good for Alexanders. How does it smell?
|
Jamanda
|
| cab wrote: |
Looks good for Alexanders. How does it smell? |
Quite strong, sweetish sort of smell.
|
cab
|
Then give it a little taste. Looks like alexanders, sounds like the smell is right, wasn't growing right by a river was it? Should be pretty safe...
|
Jamanda
|
| cab wrote: | | Then give it a little taste. Looks like alexanders, sounds like the smell is right, wasn't growing right by a river was it? Should be pretty safe... |
It's not hemlock. Or hemlock water dropwort And I know Alexanders with their yellow flowers grow there. So I think we'll be OK!
|
sean
|
You can go first.
|
Slim
|
| cab wrote: | | cpg03 wrote: | | Apiaceae nowadays! |
Oooh, laad-di-daah You'll be having a bash at me for 'cruciferae' next
But yes, you're right, Apiaceae. |
Sorry, just trying my best to eschew obfuscatory taxonomy! 
|
gourmetfungi
|
Hi there,
The photo is that of Alexanders. This is the season for them now. Very common around the coast. I live in Bristol and run forays here. Always look for the larger plants. When harvesting reach down to the base off each plant and pull individual stems from the outside. You are taking the largest stems that have the greater white stem at the bottom. This can then be simply balnched and tossed in butter.
The greener part of the stem can be peeled like rhubarb and cooked similarly or braised. I blanch and pickle many of these in a sweet pickle mixture. Very good.
The leaf especially from younger plants are used as a pot herb. In this case use it as you would parsley. It is very fragrant. Great addition to soups and stews.
The flowers (April-May) are yellow and very good in salads and for flavouring soft drinks. I make a drink called an Alexander sherbert. Recipe will be in a future book of mine.
The history of Alexanders is simple and commonplace. The romans introduced it as both a fodder crop and one for the invading armies.
I hope this is helpfull.
One last thing. I always keep a bunch in a vase in kitchen or outside at this time of year for culinary purposes.
Alexander season is December to April although now is probably approaching its most succulent time.
|
sean
|
They were OK, not spectacular though. Worth gathering but not worth a special effort to gather I think.
|
cab
|
| sean wrote: | | They were OK, not spectacular though. Worth gathering but not worth a special effort to gather I think. |
Keep with 'em. They might just surprise you. A few raw in a spring salad (we had some with kale, rocket, chickweed and sorrel the other day), chopped and used to season mussels (pepper, shallot, alexanders, white wine... wonderful), they're not just a simple 'green'.
|
gourmetfungi
|
You who say not worthwhile lack imagination. Learn to think out side of the box and maybe you may suprise yourself.
|
sean
|
Ehh? I ate something and said that I didn't find it wildly exciting. Have a stoat. And get a spell-checker for your browser, please.
|
cab
|
| sean wrote: | | Ehh? I ate something and said that I didn't find it wildly exciting. |
True, not everyone will find the same things good. But if you come across 'em again, do try a different preparation, I suspect that you'll find a dish where you can make the most of them.
I differ a little from Gourmetfungi in that I rekon they're better just a little later in the year; I think theres a bitter touch to the first growth of alexanders, I think that they're usually in their prime some time in mid to late February to early March.
|
Jamanda
|
Some of them were a bit bitter. The ones that weren't were very nice. So they will get better as they get bigger rather than worse?
|
PeteS
|
Sean, Which part(s) of the plant did you eat? I find that the stems (cooked) are the best. I am not that keen on the leaves, but everyone is different - if we were all the same, with the same tastes etc. it would be a boring old world. Down where I live (and there is great regional variation) the stems are good picked in February but tend to be at their best as the first buds begin to appear in late March/April. I like to cut the stems into short lengths, peel away the outer membrane and boil for a few minutes until just tender, then toss in butter and season with pepper. Serve as an accompanying vegetable or use as a starter on their own. Later in the season the seeds can be used as a sort of pepper.
|
Jamanda
|
He did quite like them. As did I. Small boy was having none of it - but there you go. I will pick them again - not in the pouring rain in my new boots on the way home from the shopping outlet. (I could have been more selective) If I pick them Sean will cook them and we will learn to love them by God!
|
sean
|
Stems, steamed and served with melted butter. They were fine, but lets face it, so's anything with enough melted butter. I'd pick them again, just said that I wouldn't make a special effort to look for them, unlike say wild garlic, for which I would travel considerable distances.
|
PeteS
|
You might find them better later in the year. I don't bother with them at this time of year.
As for wild garlic - I have a patch 5mins walk from my house. For Alexanders I need some form of transport.
|
Jamanda
|
| PeteS wrote: | You might find them better later in the year. I don't bother with them at this time of year.
As for wild garlic - I have a patch 5mins walk from my house. For Alexanders I need some form of transport. |
Same here! In fact - I planted some wild garlic in the front garden last year. May only be metres away this Spring!
|
PeteS
|
PS - and later in the year you can have them with wild garlic butter
|
sean
|
Now you're talking my language. 
|
cab
|
| Jamanda wrote: | | Some of them were a bit bitter. The ones that weren't were very nice. So they will get better as they get bigger rather than worse? |
Well, the ones I've had from round here have, thus far this season, been a bit bitter too. Usually they'll get sweeter as they start to grow more rapidly in Spring, then when they throw up flower stalks they start getting a bit tougher, a bit more bitter again.
|
hedgewitch
|
| PeteS wrote: | | PS - and later in the year you can have them with wild garlic butter |
Ooh - I like the sound of that. I have plentiful supply of wild garlic very close by and last year I made wild garlic bread and quiche as well as adding it to salads but I never thought of wild garlic butter.
|
PeteS
|
Actually, now I've thought about it a bit more, it might be quite a good idea. I have made various herb butters before and they freeze well. A butter could be a good way of preserving wild garlic for the summer months. I'll give it a go!
|
cab
|
| PeteS wrote: | | Actually, now I've thought about it a bit more, it might be quite a good idea. I have made various herb butters before and they freeze well. A butter could be a good way of preserving wild garlic for the summer months. I'll give it a go! |
Works reasonably well, but it lacks the fresh garlicy hit that you get with ramsons when they're fresh.
|
kevin.vinke
|
Just wondering.... we have been strongly warned here not to pick or eat anything below a meter from the ground because of the dangers of (I think it translates as) liver fluke transmitted by fox pee.
Itīs a pity because we get loads of wild strawberries and garlic in abundance.
Is this just a local issue here?
|
cab
|
| kevin.vinke wrote: | Just wondering.... we have been strongly warned here not to pick or eat anything below a meter from the ground because of the dangers of (I think it translates as) liver fluke transmitted by fox pee.
Itīs a pity because we get loads of wild strawberries and garlic in abundance.
Is this just a local issue here? |
Yeah, I've heard that from Germans before. Dunno why that is; I suspect its not so much liver fluke as rabies. We do get liver fluke here, but its more of a danger from plants growing in water in pastures, e.g. water cress.
|
PeteS
|
| cab wrote: | | PeteS wrote: | | Actually, now I've thought about it a bit more, it might be quite a good idea. I have made various herb butters before and they freeze well. A butter could be a good way of preserving wild garlic for the summer months. I'll give it a go! |
Works reasonably well, but it lacks the fresh garlicy hit that you get with ramsons when they're fresh. |
I made a wild garlic pesto last year. After about 2 days it loses just about all its strong garlic taste but still tastes lovely in pasta etc. In fact in Austria I have seen wild garlic pesto on sale in their supermarkets. It will kept for about a month in the fridge too. I would highly recommend it!
|
PeteS
|
| kevin.vinke wrote: | Just wondering.... we have been strongly warned here not to pick or eat anything below a meter from the ground because of the dangers of (I think it translates as) liver fluke transmitted by fox pee.
Itīs a pity because we get loads of wild strawberries and garlic in abundance.
Is this just a local issue here? |
We get loads of fox's in and around the New Forest. My dog is always finding their pooh! If we were worried about this then picking 90% of mushrooms would be out. I have also seen fox's in commercial crops and I guess that they pee there too!
|
cab
|
Oh, nice! So, presumably, olive oil, wild garlic... pine nuts and cheese too? Seasoning?
I guess I could just ask you for the recipe...?
|
cab
|
| PeteS wrote: |
We get loads of fox's in and around the New Forest. My dog is always finding their pooh! If we were worried about this then picking 90% of mushrooms would be out. I have also seen fox's in commercial crops and I guess that they pee there too! |
Found our local fox crapping in my garlic on the allotment. I should probably be concerned about that, but there ain't a lot I can do about it.
|
PeteS
|
| cab wrote: | Oh, nice! So, presumably, olive oil, wild garlic... pine nuts and cheese too? Seasoning?
I guess I could just ask you for the recipe...? |
That is basically it. Walnuts work too (instead of the pine nuts). I always have some left over from Christmas. You need to add salt too. I did write down the best recipe that I tried and I have it at home. I can dig it out and post it here. I also found it tasted better if ground down using a pestle and mortar rather than a food processor, but this is much more hard work!
|
PeteS
|
| cab wrote: | | PeteS wrote: |
We get loads of fox's in and around the New Forest. My dog is always finding their pooh! If we were worried about this then picking 90% of mushrooms would be out. I have also seen fox's in commercial crops and I guess that they pee there too! |
Found our local fox crapping in my garlic on the allotment. I should probably be concerned about that, but there ain't a lot I can do about it. |
Funny how this post has gone from Alexanders, to wild garlic and fox pee/pooh. In fact since I have had a dog and been foraging I have become an expert on pooh. I can now identify dog, fox, dear, badger, pig, pony and (worse of all) human pooh. Human pooh is often blamed on dogs, especially when people tread on it. It is surprisingly common around carparks in the New Forest and especailly on various local parks/woodland 
|
skedone
|
lol tell me about it i see human poo most mornings lol
|
Slim
|
| cab wrote: | | kevin.vinke wrote: | Just wondering.... we have been strongly warned here not to pick or eat anything below a meter from the ground because of the dangers of (I think it translates as) liver fluke transmitted by fox pee.
Itīs a pity because we get loads of wild strawberries and garlic in abundance.
Is this just a local issue here? |
Yeah, I've heard that from Germans before. Dunno why that is; I suspect its not so much liver fluke as rabies. We do get liver fluke here, but its more of a danger from plants growing in water in pastures, e.g. water cress. |
Can you get rabies from pee?!?!?
I'm sure as hell no expert, but I thought that liver fluke needs a wet environment to live? I would think that a thorough washing and air-drying would take care of it? 
Who wants to research liver fluke?
|
cab
|
| cpg03 wrote: |
Can you get rabies from pee?!?!?
|
Its rare, to say the least, but its so ingrained in what foragers in some parts of Europe believe that it would take a brave man to say its impossible!
| Quote: |
I'm sure as hell no expert, but I thought that liver fluke needs a wet environment to live? I would think that a thorough washing and air-drying would take care of it?
Who wants to research liver fluke? |
Washing, air drying, it would help, but liver flukes are surprisingly resillient so I definitely wouldn't bank on it. They stick hard and fast to leaves, and they form cyst like things that don't die so fast. You really want to cook 'em.
|
dougal
|
Alexanders.
Pretty sure I've found some.
OK masses and masses. Carpets of the stuff, currently about a foot high or less. Stems whitish, some (to different degrees) reddened as per Jamanda's comment.
Only the very bottom of the stems were open.
In the sunniest, most sheltered spots there were some that had errupted to more than 2ft tall with flowers coming that looked a dead spit for those in Phillips' Wild Food.
Smell sort of like celery, or carrot tops.
Picked and vase-like in a glass of water, the leaves aren't quite as *glossy* as Jamanda's, and some leaf heads were paler than others.
Seemed *very* strongly rooted. Propagate from seeds?
Before I exit in the style of Socrates, what other features do I need to check for?
And (off topic) I found a Sea Buckthorn tree in an unexpected spot!
Fruits very squidgy indeed.
Clearly collect with a bucket of some sort!
Not so much bitter, as like a spectacularly tangy version of (it took me a while to place) Passion Fruit. Add a lot of sweetness and I can imagine it making an amazing sorbet...
|
cab
|
Got a digital camera Dougal?
|
dougal
|
| cab wrote: | | Got a digital camera Dougal? |
Yes, but not yet installed the software for the rather new one... 
I'll see what I can do.
|
dougal
|
Old camera harsh flash.
A4 paper background for scale and contrast.
|
dougal
|
Having hijacked my own question -- do they look like Alexanders, or should I be looking for Socrates' recipe?
|
gil
|
| dougal wrote: | | Having hijacked my own question |
sorted. my bad. new sea buckthorn thread.
|
earthyvirgo
|
Isn't the root edible as well?
Coming up in waves on our plot of land on Anglesey at the moment and digging them up only encourages them to grow stronger.
They seem to be able to grow from the smallest piece of root left in the ground, so my effort at clrearing some last year has resulted in the opposite!. Better start eating them methinks.
EV
|
cab
|
They look like them, but I can't be 100% sure from the pic. The smell shouldn't be quite celery-ish, its more sort of aromatic, traces of myrrh in it.
|
Jamanda
|
| cab wrote: | | They look like them, but I can't be 100% sure from the pic. The smell shouldn't be quite celery-ish, its more sort of aromatic, traces of myrrh in it. |
What on Earth does myrrh smell like?
|
cab
|
| earthyvirgo wrote: | Isn't the root edible as well?
|
Apparently, but I've never had them. Meant to taste rather like celeriac.
|
cab
|
| Jamanda wrote: | | cab wrote: | | They look like them, but I can't be 100% sure from the pic. The smell shouldn't be quite celery-ish, its more sort of aromatic, traces of myrrh in it. |
What on Earth does myrrh smell like? |
Alexanders.
You've never smelled myrrh? Sort of like resiny-incense.
|
Jamanda
|
No. I don't think so. Is this odd?
|
cab
|
| Jamanda wrote: | | No. I don't think so. Is this odd? |
Errm... I dunno. Never been in one of those shops with incense and things, and just picked some up and sniffed it?
I'm the wrong person to ask about whether knowing what something smells like is odd though, I smell everything and without smell I rekon I'd walk into walls or something.
|
cab
|
It also seems really early for them to be coming in to bloom.
|
vegplot
|
| cab wrote: | | It also seems really early for them to be coming in to bloom. |
Our alexanders are coming into bloom already. Far too early, less than a foot tall.
|
cab
|
Wow... The ones here (on my plot and the few wild ones I sometimes see down the other end of town) are behind yours then.
|
vegplot
|
| cab wrote: | | Wow... The ones here (on my plot and the few wild ones I sometimes see down the other end of town) are behind yours then. |
Strange. We haven't been very cold here this winter, perhaps that's why. I've not eaten them yet, well only a leaf nibble but going to soon.
|
dougal
|
Aaallll right, so are these Alexanders?
There's a real carpet of them.
Hard to see detail in that mass of green...
So here's one of the flower spikes, shooting out from the carpet...
And yes, on the 8th February, those are BEES working on the flower heads !!! 
Here are the leaves...
And here is one of the shoots pulled out of the ground - I couldn't tear through the fibrous stem, but the whole root lifted out...
Rather like a parsnip, the root.
In mangling the stem, there was a fair amount of sap released, along with a slightly 'perfumed shampoo' aroma.
Like Mrs Mandy Cohen, (Brian's mum), I don't have a clue what Myrrh smells like, or what you do with it...
Here's the detail of how the side shoots attach to the stem. Open and reddish veined near the attachment point, forming into a tube...
So is this the right stuff??
Or is it only fit for Socrates?
|
cab
|
Looks like alexanders from where I'm sitting
|
dougal
|
Right, so I can get brave...
|
earthyvirgo
|
That's the fella'.
We (tentatively) tried a few young shoots over the weekend, just wilted them in a bit of butter and a few drop of shoyu in a pan on top of the woodburner.
The heat was a bit fierce and it ended up a little like crispy seaweed, an unusual flavour - will definately try again and keep an eye on it next time.
EV
|
cab
|
If they're really young and glossy then I love them in spring salad. Got some sitting at home for just such a meal tonight in fact (alexanders, chickweed, sorrel, maybe a little kale, chard, three cornered leek... Lovely spring greens).
|
cab
|
They're also good chopped with a little shallot and sweated down in wine with mussels, just as a seasoning in place of parsley or other herbs. Fantastic flavouring.
|
