Intrepid foragers can also harvest pine nuts. Collect closed pinecones on the ground during summer and store until spring when they open naturally. Crack the nuts with vice grips and eat raw or roasted.
green 1-inch leaves and flat, wide clusters of cream-white flowers. By early summer the berries are dark purple, with powdery-white bloom, and hang down in clusters.
Black Mustard
Harvest whole bunches by cutting above the bunch and letting it drop into a bag. Process by raking the ¼ inch berries into a bucket with your fingers—carefully removing all stems and leaves (which are toxic). Then rinse well to remove bugs and dirt.
Black Mustard grows wild on hillsides. It is recognizable in late spring by rich tones of green and yellow. Search out young greens (less than 1 inch), identifying the plant by its radish-like leaves. Black Mustard leaves are best eaten blanched or sautéed and are nutritious and high in iron. Later in summer, the flowers can be collected and ground into a spicy (mustard-like) sauce (watch out for aphids). In late summer, you can make true mustard by collecting the tiny seeds from the 1-inch pods and grinding them with vinegar.
Elderberries Elderberries are the secret bounty of our backcountry. They grow wild along roads and near creek beds. You can identify elderberry trees in the spring by their pale
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edible San Diego
September-October 2017
Raw elderberries taste peppery and have slightly toxic seeds. But once cooked, they have a
delicious, rich berry flavor. The absolute best thing to make with them is elderberry syrup. Simmer berries in a little water for 15 minutes, then mash or blend gently. Strain seeds, add in 1 pound of sugar or honey per original pound of fruit and continue simmering until thick. Steep in cinnamon, cloves, and orange peel for an extra kick. A few teaspoons of this syrup and a squeeze of lemon in hot water make an amazing tonic when sick—or any time. It can also be used as a base for sorbets, sauces, or homemade wine.
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Matt Steiger is a physicist, fisherman, home brewer, urban farmer, forager, and wannabe chef. He is always on the lookout for the best produce, fresh fish, great brews, and the perfect cup of coffee. Follow him on twitter @foodlunatic.
WHEN TO GATHER Nopales (spring) and Tunas (fall) Acorns (fall) Pine pollen (spring), needles (perennial), nuts (gather in summer or fall, open in spring) Black Mustard (Greens: spring. Flowers: spring or summer. Seeds: summer or fall) Elderberries (summer)