Produce is in abundance!  Beets, carrots, potatoes, and many other fresh and locally grown herbs and vegetables are available at farm stores and farmer’s markets this time of year.  Among the local farm grown foods, there are also many wild edibles, either ready or almost ready for harvest.   One example of a wild edible currently available for picking are wild red/black raspberries.  Although wild raspberries are an invasive plant species, for the wild forager, it is wonderful surprise to come upon a wild raspberry patch since there are typically many berries to pick! The tiger lilies are also in full bloom.  Be quick though, the blooming season is nearly over for these beauties.  Soon you will only be able to find a fresh bloom here and there.  One summertime dessert I enjoy foraging for is the tiger bloom wild raspberry surprise.  

“Tiger Bloom Wild Raspberry Surprise”

Makes 2-4 servings

4 just picked tiger lily blooms

4 tablespoons of your favorite yogurt –very chilled.

10-12 wild raspberries

Remove stamens from the bloom and also making sure flower is free of insects. The flower’s center should be clean and hollow.  Place in fridge until ready for dessert. 

Take out washed, air-dried raspberries from the refridgirator.  Also, take the yogurt out at this time.  On a pretty dish, place a tiger lily bloom.  Tea plates work wonderfully for these delicate treats. Dab a tablespoon full of your yogurt of choice into the center of the bloom. Place a wild raspberry in the center of the yogurt inside the bloom.  Lay flower gently onto plate.  Arrange a few more raspberries on the plate. Repeat with remainder of ingrediantes.  Serve immediately.  Enjoy!

*Plan on picking the tiger blooms very close to dinnertime to keep the blooms from wilting too much, or cut flower with a few inches of stem still attached and place in a cup of water in fridge.

**As for picking any type of wild edible, first make sure you have identified the plant properly.  Also, the plant edible should never be gathered from a roadside or other polluted area. (You are what you eat.) Check the plant for insect infestation or any other parasitic destruction or withered-looking leaves or stems.  Choose a very healthy, vital green plant instead.

Goldfinches have started mating now.  The cicada insects are out and singing the song of summer.  We are still in very need of rain.  The grass in this the southeastern area of the state has gone dormant due to lack of rain.  The Kettle Moraine area seems greener, however.  On my many bike trips around the Ozaukee County area, I have noticed some crop fields are doing well, others, are too dry and look in bad shape.  I am still hoping for rain.

Nature's summertime vegetable, the milkweed, is in bloom and some are currently growing their young seed pods.  In a about two weeks, pods will be ready for harvest.  There are many misconceptions of the milkweed, one example is that the plant is poisonous to humans.  I collect the young pods no more than 1.5 inches in length from the common milkweed plant this time of year.  I like to add a handful or so of the pods to stir-fry and collect a few handfuls, clean and freeze to use in the coming months. 

Staghorn sumac's fruit is almost ready to harvest.  A heavy rain is needed for all green and wild things.