I love this time of year, bright green spring produce begins to appear at the farmers' markets and heralds the start of the sunshine season! I'm not sure if its the produce that excites me because spring is coming, or if spring excites me because the best produce begins to appear.
Either way, I'm so excited for the coming season and the beautiful bounty mother nature provides!!
Fiddleheads are one of the world's coolest greens. These unfurled fronds of the ostrich fern are known as fiddleheads because they resemble the finely crafted head of a fiddle. Depending on the weather, they begin to appear for an extremely brief two weeks around late April to early May along river and stream banks, in open woodlands and at the edges of swamps and marshes across New Brunswick, Quebec and Ontario. They are harvested when just a few inches off of the ground so they are still tender and tightly coiled.
Loaded with healthful properties (such as iron and potassium), fiddleheads are easy to cook and, like asparagus, have a delicate green flavour that is best accentuated by simple cooking.
Blanch these tender greens, drain and sauté in butter and garlic for a simple and delicious treat!
(health Canada recommends that these must be cooked to enjoy as raw or undercooked fiddleheads have been known to cause tummy troubles)
