Harvest Recipe: Rhubarb Lemonade

We recently had a bounty of rhubarb and I found myself looking for a great way to use it past the usual recipes. When I stumbled across a rhubarb juice recipe, I had to try it. That original recipe was a little bit (okay, a lot!) too sweet for my taste and even my kids […]

mix and match snack cake (gluten free)

Mix and Match Snack Cake (gluten free)

This is another recipe I’m putting online because friends ask me for it so often.  🙂    Here’s an easy, delicious way to use extra fruits and veggies you have on hand and create a fabulous gluten free treat at the same time.  Every time we make it, it has a different flavor since we […]

What to do with lambsquarters

What Do You Do With Lambsquarters?

If you have a garden, chances are that you’ve been pulling up one of the best greens in it for years.  Lambsquarters are a very common “weed” in yards and gardens, but they’re actually a really tasty plant that you should probably get to know! Lambsquarters are also known as lambs quarters, wild spinach, pigweed, […]

The world's easiest and best tasting salsa

The Best (and Easiest) Fresh Salsa!

There’s nothing better when you have fresh tomatoes than homemade salsa — and luckily there’s almost nothing easier too.  Here’s our 3-minute fresh salsa recipe, which is the type of salsa (pico de gallo) you get from authentic Mexican restaurants and so good. Our recipe is adapted from one I found years ago that we […]

You Really Need a Cherry Tree (Plus Easy Cherry Pit Syrup and Liqueur Recipes)

A few years ago, we purchased a little sour cherry tree from some big box store because it was on clearance at the end of the garden season.  That little cherry tree is now a huge, productive tree that we love! It makes the most beautiful white flowers in the spring. And then around July […]

Foraged and Home Canned Foods We Eat in the Winter

Making Windfall Applesauce

This article was originally published in Daryl’s Cooking with Kids column at examiner.com in September, 2013.  Some links are affiliate links, meaning we get a small commission on purchases made through our links. Making fresh applesauce is something every kid should get to do. We are lucky enough to know several people with apple trees, […]

cranberry walnut muffins

Gluten-free Cranberry Walnut Applesauce Muffins

(Note: This recipe was originally posted by Daryl in his Cooking with Kids column on Examiner.com in 2012.) Here’s a quick and easy way to make tasty gluten-free, dairy free muffins that doesn’t require any special ingredients or much effort. Since our family went GF last spring, we’ve tried a lot of recipes that have […]

zucchini fritters (easy, gluten free, vegan version too)

Cooking From the Garden: Easy Zucchini Fritters

Got boat loads of zucchini this time of year?  Here’s a delicious and easy way to make use of them.  Zucchini fritters are kid-friendly and tasty, and the recipe can easily be converted to gluten free (the way we make them), paleo and/or vegan. The recipe is very simple and adaptable, not even really a […]

Easy two-ingredient sorbet

Easy Two-Ingredient Sorbet (Vegan)

Here’s a super simple recipe that the kids like to make for fruit sorbet.  I even let them make it for breakfast, because they think they’re getting a treat and I know it’s healthy. Just blend frozen fruit (pineapple is a family favorite and what’s pictured here) with sweetened vanilla non-dairy milk of your choice.  […]

10 Edible Flowers and How to Use Them

Flowers can turn meals positively magical.  From drinking out of tulip cups to to scattering flower petals in Wildflower Pound Cake to tossing brightly colored nasturtium petals in a salad, edible flowers can take an ordinary dish and make it extraordinary. There are plenty of flowers that are edible, but you need to be sure […]

Instant Pot Roasted Cauliflower Head Recipe

Instant Pot Makes Roasted Cauliflower Heads Quick & Easy

We love roasted cauliflower heads in our family but it takes a lot of time and effort to roast them traditionally to cook up tender and bake throughout.  I’ve discovered that the Instant Pot can eliminate most of the cooking time and delivers perfect roasted cauliflower heads in much less time. It turns out the […]

Jack's gluten free impossible crust apple or pear cobbler

Jack’s Impossible Crust Apple Cobbler (Gluten Free)

This is a fantastic simple and delicious recipe for apple or pear cobbler where the batter makes its own crust.  Our fifteen year old son, Jack, made it last week and proclaimed that it was his favorite dish so far that he’s baked (which is saying a lot, as the kid loves to bake). We […]

What Foraged and Home Grown Foods Do We Eat In the Winter?

Since next to nothing is fresh in the garden or the wild in winter in this part of the country, this is the time we rely on the root cellar and pantry. Canned, dried, frozen and root cellar foods are all staples for winter cooking for our family, including lots of wild foods we foraged […]

Foraged and Home Canned Foods We Eat in the Winter

Easy and Delicious Summer Fruit Cobbler

Foragers and back yard gardeners often have the happy blessing of buckets of fruit to make use of this time of year.  Here’s a wonderful recipe to make use of blueberries, mulberries, black raspberries, mulberries, peaches, strawberries or any other fruit that you have a bounty of. Sometime around mid-July every year, we pick over […]

Easy Gluten Free Zucchini Bread

Easy Gluten Free Zucchini Bread

It’s zucchini season, meaning that even if you don’t grow zucchini you probably have more than enough giant zucchinis to find something to do with.  Here’s a delicious way to make use of it.  This zucchini bread recipe is simple and quite versatile.  You can use your favorite gluten free flour mix or a blend […]

June foraging wrap up

Our June Foraging Wrap-Up

The first month of summer is past now and I thought I’d do a little update on what we foraged in June this year.  This might not include everything, but these were the major foods. Asparagus View this post on Instagram The wild asparagus season is pretty much over. We harvested a total of 57 […]

what to do with mulberries

Wonderful Ways to Use Mulberries

It’s mulberry season!  Whether you have a mulberry tree in your back yard or local park or you have generous friends or neighbors, these sweet treats are all over right now. There are so many reasons to gather mulberries. First of all, they’re incredibly healthy.  Mulberries are loaded with nutrients, antioxidants, vitamins and minerals and […]

Make your own homemade fruit leather

Easy DIY Fruit Leather

  Whether you have buckets of wild mulberries or an excess of peaches that you can’t possibly eat in time, fruit leather is a fabulous way to make use of it.  Fruit leather is wonderfully simple and you can customize each batch with whatever fruits you have and flavors you’re craving. Not only is fruit […]

Must Modern Cider Making Be Chemical-Laden and Complicated?

As an avid home brewer of wines and ciders, I was excited to read an ARC copy of Modern Cider: Simple Recipes to Make Your Own Ciders, Perries, Cysers, Shrubs, Fruit Wines, Vinegars, and More, by Emma Christensen, through Net Galley. I am always looking for more recipes and for ideas to simplify the process. […]

how to make elderflower syrup

How to Make Elderflower Syrup for Elderflower Cakes

If you’ve been following the royal wedding (or even if you haven’t), you’ve probably heard about the spectacular elderflower cake that pastry chef Claire Ptak designed for the much-anticipated wedding of Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. The wedding cake is to be served at the Reception. It was designed by Claire Ptak and features elderflower […]

20 Herbs you can grow in shade

20 Herbs You Can Grow in Shade

Just because your yard is partially shaded doesn’t mean you can’t grow your own herbs this summer. Plenty of herbs actually prefer partial or dappled shade, especially in warmer climates.   You often hear that herbs are sun-lovers, but its surprising how happy many herbs are in shade. In our zone 4 Minnesota garden, we […]

How to Make Dandelion Syrup

How to Make Dandelion Syrup

Daryl has made dandelion syrup several times with our kids and it’s always a big hit.  Not only is it fun, but the syrup tastes delicious and it’s full of vitamins from the dandelions.  It’s also a great vegan substitute for honey, with a similar color and taste. Although it’s the dead of winter right […]

What’s in Season in February — and What to Eat Local in the North

Lots of fruits and vegetables are in season in February, and it’s still also possible to eat local foods with a little bit of creativity. Why eat foods that are in season?   It pays to eat foods that are in season — to help save money, to help the environment, to get the freshest […]

A Week’s Worth of Healthy, Frugal Organic Dinner Ideas

A Week’s Worth of Healthy, Frugal Organic Dinner Ideas

Wondering what to plan for supper this week?  Here are some healthy, frugal meals you can make if you’re vegan, paleo or anywhere in between.  Even if you buy all organic ingredients, these are meals that are easy on your budget.   1. Soup — Use any veggies, leftovers, grains, meats or beans you have […]

How to Divorce Your Grocery Store

Here’s an easy way to dramatically lower your grocery costs and still eat well.  At the start of each week (or whenever your local stores change their sales), check out the sales flyers for any grocery stores near you.  Only check for grocery items that you either use regularly or would use if they were […]

How to make pumpkin puree

How to Make Homemade Pumpkin Puree

Sure, you can go buy those orange cans of pumpkin puree at the grocery store, but making homemade pumpkin puree is so much more satisfying! It’s also much easier than you might think.  Best of all, this time of year it’s incredibly cheap, even if you didn’t grow your own pumpkins.  My kitchen table is […]

It’s Elderberry Season!

Daryl and I have been faithfully checking our elder patches for the past few weeks and he brought home a bag of our first elderberry bounty for the year this week. This particular clump of elders is bordering a nursing home that has given us permission to pick their pears and elderberries.  He harvested them […]

25 Garden crops to plant in August for your fall garden

25 Herbs and Veggies to Plant in August for Your Fall Garden

If you want to extend your back yard bounty of fresh veggies, now is the time to start your fall garden.   There are many garden crops that can handle some frost and some that can tolerate temperatures well below freezing. Root veggies such as carrots, beets, kohlrabi and turnips actually taste better after some […]

#fyfo100 checklist of 10 ways to afford organic foods

The Top 10 #FYFO-100 Strategies for Eating Organic for Less

I’ll mostly be focusing on 10 main ways to save money on healthy and organic foods in the FYFO-100 series (Feed Your Family Organic for $100 (or less!)). Everybody has different circumstances, so different strategies will be better for different families. You do not need to do all or even most of these to save […]

FYFO 100 Feed Your Family Organic for $100 (or less!)

FYFO- 100: Feed Your Family Organic for $100 a Week (or less!)

Yes, you can feed your family healthy, organic, non-GMO food and not go bankrupt doing it! Welcome to FYFO-100, where I’ll share how we feed our family of 7 for around $100 a week. Every few days, I’ll share more tips for how we make it work. You can go all-in and learn skills like […]

Foraging and cooking with elderberries and elder flowers

Now in Paperback!

  My elderberry book is now available in a paperback edition!  We heard from many people who wanted a physical copy of the book, especially to make use of it while foraging and for the cookbook section.  I worked over the past couple of months to create the best possible paperback version, with black and […]

Elderberry Cream Cheese Cupcakes

Elderberry Cream Cheese Cupcakes

Elderflower season is coming to an end and that means elderberry season is coming soon!  Make sure you use some of this year’s elderberry crop to make some elderberry jam and elderberry pie filling, because they’re so wonderful in recipes like elderberry cream cheese cupcakes (and elderberry thumbprint cookies, and elderberry fluff, and elderberry frosting….). […]

How to make elderflower syrup (or elderflower sparkling wine)!

How to Make Elderflower Soda (or Elderflower Sparkling Wine)

Have you heard of elderflower soda?  This is a traditional elderflower delicacy that is so popular in Romania that it inspired Coca-Cola to release their own version, Fanta Shokata (though theirs contains no real elderflowers). It is also known as Socată or Suc de Soc. Here’s the recipe to make your own, which is another […]

20 Vegetable, herb and edible flower seeds you can still plant in June

20 Vegetable and Herb Seeds You Can Still Plant in June

Think June is too late to start seeds in your garden this year? No way! There are still lots of veggies you can direct seed in your garden.   Indeed, many garden plants grow much more happily in June when the soil has warmed up. Some bean varieties mature in as little as 35 days, […]

elderberry cream cheese spread

Elderberry Cream Cheese Spread

Here’s a quick, easy and delicious recipe to make use of elderberry jam that you may have put up.  I featured it in my new book, Elderberries: The Beginner’s Guide to Foraging, Preserving and Using Elderberries for Health Remedies, Recipes, Drinks and More, which went live on Amazon at the Kindle store on Friday and […]

Quick mix and match mini donuts (gluten and dairy free)

Quick Mix-and Match Glazed Mini Donuts (Gluten Free and Dairy Free)

Our 9 year-old, Alex, asked last night if we could make mini donuts together for breakfast for everybody today.  I said yes, and dug out this recipe that I came up with a few years ago.  This is a really easy but delicious recipe that also includes lots of fruit and/or veggies, since each batch […]

Roasted Tomato Sauce (Simple and Delicious!)

Nothing smells better on a fall day than roasted tomato sauce. With back yards and farmers’ markets brimming with fresh tomatoes right now, this is the perfect time to make up a batch.  Once you try, you’ll never want make tomato sauce any other way! If you’ve never made roasted tomato sauce, you don’t know […]

Roots to Stems: How to use every part of your produce!

Root to Stem Cooking: How to Use Every Part of Your Produce

  When you stroll through the farmers’ market or pick up your CSA box, you’re likely to find something that you won’t find in area supermarkets — whole plants.   Local growers tend to leave the leaves on root vegetables like beets and carrots, keep the flowery fronds on the fennel and otherwise give you […]

10 Delicious ways to use mulberries

(Note from Daryl:  This was originally shared in my urban foraging column on Examiner many years ago.) I shared how to easily harvest mulberries with your kids last week. Now, here are ten great ways to use your haul. A little about mulberries: You can use them in any recipe that calls for berries. If […]

15 Ways to Use Foraged Walnuts

15 more ways to use your foraged walnuts

I’m still busy cracking the walnuts I harvested last fall (I have over 14 cups of meats so far), and I’m still finding creative ways to use them. Here are some more easy recipes I discovered online. Many of them involve maple syrup, because the maple sap has been running and it’s another great treat […]