Walnut Season Arrives (And a recipe for Shiitake and Wild Black Walnut “Tartare”)
When I was growing up in central Ohio, school began right after Labor Day. This was advantageous compared to today’s August starts not just because of the longer summer break, but because we would have scads of black walnuts to hurl at each other as we walked to school that first morning.
They littered the ground all along Stanwood, Denver, and Remington streets on my route to Maryland Elementary School. It was customary to announce your approach behind fellow students by pelting them with the large green orbs. The nuts seemed to have been created especially to be launched by nine-year-old boys. Two inches across, perfectly round, and with a slightly rough texture that we imagined made it possible to throw curveballs with them. The ripest ones were best because if they could be made to explode on impact they left an indelible stain and a smell that followed the target around school all day. I have been both victim and perpetrator numerous times.
Today I use the sweetmeats for far more peaceful purposes such as cakes, breads and salads, though when no one is looking I occasionally test my aim out on the flood plain behind my house. Still haven’t mastered that curveball. [Read more →]
Among the foods that gardeners and gastronomes fawn over, yet others rarely even know, stands sorrel. An early spring green with brash lemony flavor that comes from an abundance of oxalic acid, it is a powerful addition to soups and sauces, and is tasty in salads when picked young.
When researching the history and lore of a particular food, something I do with perhaps more frequency than the average person, one of my favorite resources to turn to is the late Waverly Root, an American journalist assigned to Paris for most of his career, and his indispensable Food: An Authoritative Visual History and Dictionary of the Foods of the World. And, honestly, how could I not turn to Root when writing about three often overlooked winter vegetables: turnips, parsnips and rutabagas? Despite the fact that in our modern day they play second fiddle to carrots, these three are wonderful, hearty winter fare, delicious in a mash with other root vegetables, in soups and stews, or roasted in the oven until crisp and savory. They are also well appreciated in the lean months because of their long shelf life and low cost.
