Wild Summer and Fall Plant Foods: The Foxfire Americana Library (8) Read online

  ANCHOR BOOKS EDITION, SEPTEMBER 2011

  Copyright © 1975

  All rights reserved. Published in the United States by Anchor Books, a division of Random House, Inc., New York.

  Anchor Books and colophon are registered trademarks of Random House, Inc.

  This work originally appeared in Foxfire 3, © 1975 by The Foxfire Fund, Inc. Reprinted by permission of Random House, Inc.

  eISBN: 978-0-307-94827-4

  v3.1

  Table of Contents

  Cover

  Title Page

  Copyright

  A Note About The Foxfire Americana Library Series

  Canning and Preserving

  Berries and Fruits

  White mulberry

  Red mulberry

  Wild gooseberry

  Allegheny serviceberry

  Serviceberry

  Black raspberry

  Wineberry

  Dewberry

  Southern dewberry

  Blackberry

  Allegheny blackberry

  Swamp blackberry

  Sumac

  Buckberry

  Squaw huckleberry

  Sparkleberry

  High bush blueberry

  High bush black blueberry

  Low blueberry

  Bilberry

  Dwarf huckleberry

  Elderberry

  Possum Haw

  Black haw

  Figs

  Mayapple

  Pawpaw

  River plum

  Chicksaw plum

  Peach

  Pincherry

  Wild cherry

  One-flowered haw

  October haw

  River haw

  Pear

  Apple

  Crabapple (Northern)

  Crabapple (Southern)

  Pasture rose

  Swamp rose

  Maypop

  Fox grape

  Chicken grape

  Summer grape

  Muscadine

  Persimmon

  Groundcherry

  Cattail

  Tops, Bottoms, and In-Betweens

  Cattail

  Nutgrass

  Nut sedge

  Chiney-brier

  Wild bean vine

  Hog peanut

  Ground nut

  Honey locust

  Jerusalem artichoke

  Thistle

  Wild Teas

  Agrimony

  Red clover

  Basswood

  Mints

  Ground ivy

  Catnip

  Oswego tea

  Pale bergamot

  Mountain mint

  Pennyroyal

  Curled mint

  Spearmint

  Peppermint

  Blue-mountain tea

  Yarrow

  Chamomile

  Flavorings

  Wood sorrel

  Dill

  Tansy

  Nuts

  Black Walnut

  Butternut

  Pecan

  Shagbark hickory

  Shellbark hickory

  Mockernut

  Pignut hickory

  Hazelnut

  Beech

  Chestnut

  Chinquapin

  White oak

  A NOTE ABOUT THE FOXFIRE AMERICANA LIBRARY SERIES

  For almost half a century, high school students in the Foxfire program in Rabun County, Georgia, have collected oral histories of their elders from the southern Appalachian region in an attempt to preserve a part of the rapidly vanishing heritage and dialect. The Foxfire Fund, Inc., has brought that philosophy of simple living to millions of readers, starting with the bestselling success of The Foxfire Book in the early 1970s. Their series of fifteen books and counting has taught creative self-sufficiency and has preserved the stories, crafts, and customs of the unique Appalachian culture for future generations.

  Traditionally, books in the Foxfire series have included a little something for everyone in each and every volume. For the first time ever, through the creation of The Foxfire Americana Library, this forty-five-year collection of knowledge has been organized by subject. Whether down-home recipes or simple tips for both your household and garden, each book holds a wealth of tried-and-true information, all passed down by unforgettable people with unforgettable voices.

  SUMMER AND FALL WILD PLANT FOODS

  All the plants mentioned here grow easily in, and are native to, our part of the mountains, and were used traditionally in the ways noted. Any recipes that turned up whose actual use we could not verify with our older contacts were simply left out of the chapter.

  Although the recipes call for the use of sugar, honey or sorghum are both acceptable substitutes, except for fancy cakes or light pastries. Some rules of thumb follow: 1) Both honey and sorghum may be used with preserves or canned fruits such as apples, peaches, and pears. The preserves will taste better and sweeter than if sugar is used, and less of each can be added (sweeten to taste). 2) Honey is excellent in breads and other yeast doughs. 3) Sorghum is best used in dark cakes such as apple cake, and will impart a ginger or caramel flavor. It is also good for sweetening apple butter—sweeten to taste and then add cinnamon or other desired spices.

  Once again, we have been aided by Marie Mellinger, who has checked our information and added the proper botanical names, and by Carol Ruckdeschel, who has provided us with drawings of many of the plants.

  CANNING AND PRESERVING

  Making jams or jellies became popular after glass jars became available for canning and preserving. Before that, fruits and berries were dried or made into strawberry or peach leather. Drying fruits and berries called for patience and a great deal of sunlight, or an oven large enough to hold trays of fruit.

  In the early days of jelly-making, the mountain women did not have Certo or Sure-jel, and used green fruit along with the ripe to make jelly “jell” or thicken. The tart little wild crabapples were often added to blackberries or blueberries. A fruit acid also was made up for this purpose by dissolving 1¾ ounces tartaric acid in three cups water. Pour this over three quarts mashed, sour-tasting fruit, and let stand twenty-four hours. Strain the fruit, and add one pound sugar to each pint of juice, stirring constantly until the sugar is dissolved. Bottle the juice, but don’t seal the jars tightly for several days. This juice (two tablespoons in each batch) may be added to juices that need more tartness to make jelly. Or make a blackberry acid by adding one gallon blackberries to a quart boiling water. Let the berries stand six hours, then pour off and strain. To each quart juice, add one ounce tartaric acid. To each pint of this juice, add 11⁄3 pounds sugar. As soon as the sugar dissolves, bottle the juice and seal the bottles with paraffin. Add these juices to berry juices to make jelly when acid is absent in the berries.

  Mrs. Cora Ledbetter gave us these directions her mother and grandmother had used for making jellies.

  “Fruit for jelly should never be fully ripe; some fruits must be almost green. There are exceptions to this rule, but very few. It is important in jelly-making that the fruit be used in the proper stage of ripeness, as no amount of cooking will make jelly of over-ripe fruit, and if too green, the flavor of the fruit is lost. It is also necessary that good, sound fruit be used to make clear, firm jelly. A porcelain kettle is always best, but a brass kettle (if it’s kept bright) or a new tin pan will do.

  “When the fruit is being cut, it should be kept in clear water until ready for use; then it should be taken from the water, placed in the kettle, and cove
red with fresh water, as the fruit is apt to have colored the first. Keep the kettle covered, and steam the fruit until it’s perfectly tender, as you wish to get the juice from the fruit without breaking or mashing it more than is necessary. When ready to strain, pour in a jelly bag; hang it up and let it drip; don’t squeeze.

  “It is best to boil the juice a few minutes before adding the sugar. Speed is necessary if the natural flavor of the fruit is to be retained and the jelly is to be bright and clear. The jelly should “make” in twenty to thirty minutes from the time the sugar is added, and it should be skimmed all the time it is boiling. The best way to tell when it is ready is to drop a little from the spoon into a cup of cold water. If it goes to the bottom and forms a ball, it is ready to be taken from the fire. Another way to test its readiness is to let a small quantity cool on a perfectly dry surface; if ready, it should form a jelly.

  “After pouring the jelly into the jars or jelly glasses, let them stand in the sun several hours. Then place papers, dipped in brandy, on the jelly and cover, or use paraffin or tins.

  “Never cover the jelly jars with the tins until the jelly is thoroughly cooled, otherwise the moisture from the warm jelly will cause the tops to rust. The jelly should be kept in a dry place.

  “To clarify jelly, beat the white of an egg and put it in the juice when the sugar is added; when it boils up as if it would boil over, take it from the fire and pour in a tablespoonful of cold water. After the ebullition ceases, put it on the fire again. Repeat this, then strain through a jelly bag, return to the fire, and let it boil until it jellies.”

  To can berries, select those that are ripe and firm. Put them in jars filled with cold water; have the rubbers on the jar lids and place the tops on loosely. Place the jars in a can, or any deep vessel, in which a heavy, folded cloth or rack has been placed. Fill the can with water to within an inch of the top of the jars, put it on the stove, and let the water in the can boil three minutes. Tighten the tops of the jars, remove them from the heat, and let cool. When cool, tighten the tops again. A cup of sugar may be added to each half gallon of berries when they are first put in the jars. Care should be taken to have them well sealed before packing them away, and they must be kept in a cool place.

  BERRIES AND FRUITS

  White mulberry (Morus alba) (family Moraceae)

  The white mulberry was introduced to this country at an early date to help promote the silkworm industry. Silkworm culture never became very successful, but the mulberries remained, spreading naturally throughout the area. It is a small tree with shining leaves, rather rough to the touch and varying in form from whole, ovate to mitten-shaped to deeply cut or incised. Greenish catkins in early spring are followed by whitish or pinkish fruits of a rather insipid taste. Birds love them and a white mulberry tree will attract numerous bird species. The fruits are considered edible, but inferior to those of the red mulberry. Dried white mulberries were used as a substitute for raisins or figs.

  Red mulberry (Morus rubra) (family Moraceae)

  The red mulberry is a small, spreading tree rather common in the mountains, and often found around old homesites. Leaves are ovate, roughly hairy above, and softly hairy below. The fruits may be dark red, purple, or black. They have always been used for pies, preserves, jams, or jellies, and also make good wine.

  Jake Waldroop told us that “mulberries ripen in June, about the first part. They’re a long-shaped berry, usually an inch, or even two or three inches, long. The trees have a pretty blossom of a pinkish color. The mulberries are practically all red.”

  ILLUSTRATION 1 Red mulberry

  Mulberry candy: crush mulberries and mix with ground walnuts. Make small balls and roll in sugar.

  Mulberry pie: cook mulberries, and drain. Mix with two beaten eggs, one cup cream, and ½ cup sugar. Fill a pie shell and bake.

  Wild gooseberry (Ribes cynosbati) (family Saxifragaceae)

  (dog bramble, dogberry)

  The wild gooseberry is a small shrub found in the rich coves, and on the rocky ledges and outcrops of the mountains. It has semi-trailing, very prickly stems four to six feet long, and slightly hairy three- to five-lobed leaves. Small yellow flowers are followed by reddish striped, prickly berries that are very sweet inside. Gooseberries were hard to find but prized for jams and jellies when available. Spiced gooseberries were served with roast fowl on special holidays such as Thanksgiving and Christmas. They also make good pies and preserves. Cultivated English gooseberry, which has berries of a greenish color, sometimes persists around old house or garden sites.

  Allegheny serviceberry (Amelanchier laevis) (family Rosaceae)

  (sarviceberry, sugarplum, shadbush, juneberry, currant tree, sarvis)

  The service berry is an understory tree of the mountain woods. It has smooth gray bark, and rather crooked branches. Leaves are narrow and smooth, with slightly toothed edges. The flowers appear very early in the spring with the new leaf buds. Each individual blossom has five long white petals radiating from a greenish center. The red-purple berries are edible and sweet with a pleasant odor.

  Serviceberry (Amelanchier canadensis)

  (sarviceberry, lancewood, Indian pear, May cherry)

  The Canadian shadbush grows on the higher mountains. Leaves are ovate, and the young leaves have a reddish color. The flowers are slightly pink and blossom with the opening leaves, somewhat later than the Allegheny serviceberry. Both trees are called “service” berries because their flowering branches were picked and carried into churches for the Easter service.

  Berries of both species are equally good and are prized for sauces and pies. They can be canned, dried, or eaten raw. They should be picked before they are fully ripe.

  Jake Waldroop told us a lot about serviceberries. “They ripen in June. They’re good food for turkeys, squirrels, bears—practically all wild game love to feed on sarvis. They’re a pale reddish color. Some sarvis trees will get very large. I’ve seen sarvis trees over a foot through. Most of them, though, are the size of your arm. You can’t harvest the berries without hacking down the tree or getting somebody to climb up and bend the limbs over. The berries grow in a cluster. There’ll be just whole wads of them. The sarvis trees grow back in the wilder mountains, back down the Nantahala River, around under Albert Mountain, Standing Indian, Ridgepole, along Laurel Creek and all those places. Sarvis trees grow along the water courses mostly. Sometimes you find’em up on the mountainsides.

  “The berries are just wonderful for pies. And you can just bend down a limb and stand there and eat till you almost tear yourself apart. They’re sweet, got a good flavor. The sarvis can’t hardly be beat for anything that grows wild in the mountains.

  “The sarvis is a hardwood tree, almost as hard as any timber that grows. You can’t cultivate them. They grow in the wilder country. They’re the first thing that blooms in spring of the year.”

  All of our contacts agreed that it was hard to get the berries before the birds do. They’re high up in the trees and their red color attracts the birds.

  Serviceberry pie: heat one pint ripe berries and ⅔ cup sugar and pour into a pie shell. Bake in a hot oven. (You may substitute serviceberries for blueberries in pie recipes.)

  Serviceberry flan: three cups berries; ½ cup sugar; ¾ cup flour; 1¼ cups milk; pinch of salt; one tablespoon vanilla. Beat milk, sugar, flour, vanilla, and salt together. Pour half of the mixture in a baking pan. Heat one minute. Add the berries, then cover with the other half of the mix. Bake one hour at 350°.

  Muffins: Add serviceberries to cornbread or corn muffins.

  Black raspberry (Rubus occidentalis) (family Rosaceae)

  (black cap, thimbleberry)

  The black raspberry appears as a native in cool mountain ravines, but is most common where it has escaped from cultivation and has naturalized in old fields and gardens. This black berry has very pale, long, arching canes, and finely cut, very soft green leaves, whitish on the underside. The fruit is small, usually purple-black in color, but s
ometimes appears in a pale yellow form. It is very sweet when fully ripe and highly esteemed for jelly or jam. Berries were often dried to preserve them for winter.

  There are several varieties of these berries, all good for jellies, jams, etc. If very light jelly is desired, the pink or white varieties should be used, and the berries gathered just before they are ripe. For jam and dark jellies, very ripe berries should be used. For preserves, gather the berries as for jelly. Ripe fruit is also desirable for wines and cordials. Fresh berries should always be used.

  The leaves of the black raspberry are rich in vitamin C and were often dried and used for tea. Place several leaves in a cup of hot water and allow to stand ten minutes, then strain and serve with milk and sugar to make the tea.

  Mrs. Mann Norton told us, “I like wild raspberries better than I do the tame ones. They’ve got lots more flavor. They used to be on our place up at the farm and we would go out and pick an eight-pound bucket full.”

  It has been suggested that they taste best eaten fresh with sugar and cream, but they also made a good berry drink. To make this, put berries in jars with vinegar, seal, and let stand one month. Strain through a sieve and put the juice in sterilized bottles. To use, dilute with cold water and sweeten with sugar.

  Raspberry jelly: take ½ gallon berries and boil them in one pint water until thoroughly cooked. Strain, and to one pint juice, add one pound sugar. Boil until it jellies, and pour into jars.

  Raspberry preserves: gather the berries when they are almost ripe. Put ½ gallon in a porcelain kettle with one pint of water. Boil ten minutes, or until the berries are tender. Drain off ⅔ of the juice, add one pound of sugar for each pound of berries, and boil until the syrup is thick. Put in jars and seal while hot.

  Raspberry pickles: wash ½ gallon fresh, almost ripe, berries. Place them in self-sealing jars with a half teaspoon each of cloves and allspice, and one stick of cinnamon. Boil 1½ pints of good apple vinegar with a half cup of sugar and pour over the berries. Seal while hot.