Landescape - historic foraging walk

Seasonal Suffolk - Fresh Fridays

www.seasonalsuffolk.co.uk

What to forage in November - Sloes

Now is the perfect time to pick blackthorn/sloes for making into sloe gin. The frost will have softened the skin slightly, unfortunately they are still as lip puckeringly sour. Recipes vary from half the weight of sugar to sloes to a more reasonable couple of spoonfuls (remember its easier to make it sweeter than less so later on). Stab the fruit (in revenge perhaps) put in a wide necked bottle add sugar to taste and fill up with gin. The longer you leave it to infuse the better.

Remember to wear stout gloves as the thorns are strong enough to puncture tractor tyres, but the idea that a scratch from a blackthorn is more likely to become infected than other kinds of trees is a myth.

The leftover fruit from a empty bottle are delicious dipped in chocolate.

What to Forage in October - Walnuts

Not all walnuts are created equal

 There is a house in Melford Road ( just past the vets) with a huge box of walnuts for sale at 50p a bag. There are also some for sale in the health food shop. The trouble with making a map of good foraging spots is people seem to be using it! Having to buy walnuts is outrageous.

What to forage in September - Hazel nuts

Found a tree that is dropping delicious thin shelled nuts all over the pavement at the junction of Acton Lane and Waldingfield Road.

Also a pitiful if tasty harvest of beech mast, when peeled they taste like a slightly oily sweet chestnut.

What to forage in September - Elderberries

Plentiful juicy elderberries this year, really easy crop to process just strip the berry off the stalk with a fork.

Cook with sugar and a little water. When cooked add to apple for use in crumbles and pies or reduce down to syrup (excellent for keeping winter colds at bay).