Blog
Follow along as we detail the method and technique behind our food.
Quercus spp. Oak trees.
These mystical towering giants hold a special place in the heart of humanity. We have relied on them as a source of fuel, timber, food, & spiritual inspiration for millennia. Myths about their life giving essence can be found from cultures as diverse as the ancient Greeks, the Celts, & the Sioux.
Grifola frondosa aka Hen of the Woods or Maitake
If smelling of mice, yes mice, looking like a pissed off hen, and being a parasite turns you off then you’re missing out. Not only is this fungus the true harbinger of fall but it is an anti-carcinogenic powerhouse.
Purslane – Portulaca oleracea
This plant reigns supreme when compared to all other leafy vegetables. That’s right the plant you mercilessly rip from your flower beds and toss in the compost pile is a Herculean überfood.
Hedgehog Mushroom – Hydnum repandum
This fungus is a real treat! Many foragers stumble on this fungus while looking for chanterelles. From afar I often think they are. Hedgehog mushrooms are mychorrizal with hardwoods & conifers.
The Ringless Honey Mushroom: Armillaria Tabescens
If you live in the North East or near the Great Lakes (or east of the Mississippi) then you are seeing this wild mushroom now. At Larder we grill this fungus over high heat and use it in duxelles, salads, and pickles.
A Little Note About Butchery…
I’m a big fan of seam butchery. When you seam you follow the naturally defined divide between muscles. You end up with drastically different cuts of meat from what we’re all used to seeing from our purveyors and grocery store butcher.
Salt
There’s something powerful in your kitchen. Wars have been waged for it and peace has been brokered with it. Civilizations have been built on it and cities have been named after it. It is something we deeply crave and is vital to our health. No, I’m not talking about chocolate. I speak of salt.
Chanterelles!
Cantharellus spp. aka chanterelles are up in Cleveland! To properly identify Cantharellus cibarius or other Cantharellus spp. look for the following.
What is Koji?
Koji has a long and varied history. After domestication around 7,000 BCE on the Korean Peninsula or in China, it was realized that it could transform the unfermentable long chain starches in rice into simple fermentable sugars. It was also realized that it could do the same for the complex proteins found in beans by turning them into extremely tasty amino acids.
Forgotten Jewish Foods
Why does a food, a living cultural link to our past, present, and future, become forgotten? Does the time and place in which each food is enjoyed hold the only supreme relevance for its enjoyment?