Ancestral Spring Greens: “Viva La Italia”! — Gather Victoria

I am passionate about ancestral foods and none are more ancient than the wild greens known today as weeds. So in honor of International Women’s Day, I’ve decided to share these spring recipes from Gather Victoria Patreon, Wild Green “Erbazzone” Pies, and Wild Green Pancotto Soup. What, you may ask, do wild weedy greens such…
Ancestral Spring Greens: “Viva La Italia”! — Gather Victoria

MARCH MAGIC: BABA’S RED & WHITE SPIRAL COOKIES — Gather Victoria

“Spring has arrived, we will survive!” Old Romanian Saying Banish winter, bless the coming of spring, and ensure your face remains beautiful all year with these Rosehip & Raspberry Jam Spirals! They are my edible cookie version of the red and white magical talismans woven by Babas (old women or grandmothers) each March in Eastern…
MARCH MAGIC: BABA’S RED & WHITE SPIRAL COOKIES — Gather Victoria

The Caileach’s Red Ale Cake: An Imbolc Tale of the Darkness & the Light — Gather Victoria

I’ve been celebrating Imbolc for over a decade and each year I discover more layers to its mythology and food lore. Last year over at Gather Victoria Patreon, I created a Cailleach Ale Cake (the oldest spirit in the world) in honor of the dark counterpart of Brigid, the Gaelic Cailleach, one of the oldest…
The Caileach’s Red Ale Cake: An Imbolc Tale of the Darkness & the Light — Gather Victoria

A Winter Tip To Help You Find Morel Mushrooms

Nature is full of signs.

Tracks, pellets, and clouds reveal information to the astute observer who pays attention. Nothing is meaningless when awareness is practiced. Every track, tree, and titmouse means something.

So it goes with mushrooms. Every mushroom relays information to the person who pays attention.

As an example, consider velvet foot (Flammulina velutipes) — a cold-loving mushroom that provides food and medicine. This mushroom reveals something that field guides and educators rarely mention:

Velvet foot can easily help us find morel mushrooms.

How so? In this brand new video, I explain the connection.

I’d also like to mention that today is the last day to receive $100 off your purchase of Foraging Wild Mushrooms. This online course is designed to help you safely and successfully harvest wild mushrooms from the forest, from the field, and from your own backyard — even during the winter season!

You can register here.

Thank you for your continued support.

— Adam Haritan

Celebrating the Winter Solstice with Sacred Foods and Feasting — The Druids Garden

The Winter Solstice has long been a time of feasting and fires, especially with regional and special foods, a tradition that has global significance in many cultures. I’ve always enjoyed this time as a chance to dig into some really interesting sacred cooking and bring back the light by enjoying foods that were preserved in…
Celebrating the Winter Solstice with Sacred Foods and Feasting — The Druids Garden

6 Tips To Help You Find More Edible Mushrooms This Winter

Winter might not seem like an ideal time to find wild edible mushrooms, but let me assure you: edible mushrooms can be found during the coldest months of the year.

Many fungi are psychrophilic (“cold” + “loving”). They require cold temperatures to grow. Examples of habitats that support psychrophilic fungi include permafrost, glacial ice, and off-shore polar waters.

Fortunately, local forests also support cold-loving mushrooms, so while it might be fun to look for fungi on icebergs this winter season, we can simply hunt our local woods instead.

To help you find more edible mushrooms this winter season, I created a video in which I share 6 tips that will greatly improve your harvest. (The 6th tip in particular sounds counterintuitive but is quite effective when you implement it.)

You can watch the video here.

I’d also like to mention that the video is one of over 80 exclusive videos featured in Foraging Wild Mushrooms — a four-season online course designed to help you successfully forage wild mushrooms.

The online course is currently open for enrollment and on sale ($100 off) until Monday, December 19. To get a sneak peek into the kinds of content found within the course, check out the video.

*Please note that this video is publicly available until Monday, December 19. It will only be available to registered students afterwards.

Thanks for reading and watching, and thanks for your continued support.

—Adam Haritan

Season of Feasting: St. Barbara Christmas Cake — Gather Victoria

Happy St. Barbara’s Day! It never ceases to amaze that if you scratch the surface of any holiday dish you’ll find a goddess history thousands of years old. Take this German Lemon Loaf Cake baked by my Oma for as long as I can remember. Its intensely lemony glaze soaks into the cake making it…
Season of Feasting: St. Barbara Christmas Cake — Gather Victoria

Uncanny Fruits, Autumn Foraging & Chocolate Bundt Cake — Gather Victoria

From quince, medlar to barberry, I love to forage for the odd fruits which abound this time of year. The following recipe for this intensely moist almost pudding-like bundt, however, is filled with two strange-looking fruits I’ve not cooked much with before. It’s adapted from the Chocolate Cherry Samhain Bundt I just posted on Gather…
Uncanny Fruits , Autumn Foraging & Chocolate Bundt Cake — Gather Victoria

Foraging The Elusive Mayapple

Tropical fruit flavors are not commonly detected in my neck of the woods. When they are, the experience is unforgettable.

Mayapple (Podophyllum peltatum) is an eastern North American plant whose ripe fruit tastes like a mix between pineapple and Starburst candy. All other parts of the plant (e.g., rhizomes, leaves, stems, and unripe fruits) are considered toxic.

My first encounter with a ripe mayapple fruit was unforgettable. I actually smelled the fruit before I saw it. Within seconds of harvesting, I indulged in what little edible material was available. The taste was ambrosial — almost too good to be true — and from that day forward I became a devout seeker of ripe mayapple fruits.

As it turns out, conditions this year have been very good for mayapple fruits. Foragers in many locations have been reporting bountiful harvests. Because conditions have been fruitful, I decided to film a video in which I discuss key tips for improving your yield.

If you are interested in becoming a devout seeker of ripe mayapple fruits, check out the video!

Foraging Wild Mushrooms is an online course that is currently open for enrollment until September 2nd. This go-at-your-own-pace video course is perfect for beginners who are looking to develop their skills. If you are eager to harvest wild mushrooms but don’t know where to start or where to go, Foraging Wild Mushrooms will equip you with the necessary skills to ensure that your harvests are safe and rewarding. You can learn more by clicking this link.

Thanks for reading and watching, and thank you for your continued support!

-Adam Haritan

Foraging Wineberries — Delicious Wild Edible Fruits

What would summer be without a trip to the local berry patch?

In my neck of the woods and fields, it wouldn’t be summer at all.

Some of nature’s tastiest fruits — black raspberries, red raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries — ripen during the warmest days of the year. A perfectly timed visit to a prime location can yield a berry bonanza.

One such prime location includes sunny openings within rich woods. It is here where a particular kind of raspberry grows. Known as wineberry (Rubus phoenicolasius), this semi-recent newcomer to the North American continent produces delicious edible fruits that taste like tangy red raspberries.

During my latest visit to a local wineberry patch, I filmed a video in which I discuss the factors that contribute to the success of wineberry in North America, as well as tips for locating wild populations.

If you are interested in harvesting wineberries this year, check out the brand new video!

I was a recent guest on the WildFed Podcast hosted by Daniel Vitalis. In this conversation, we chat about my favorite topic as of late: trees. You can listen to the interview through one of the following links:

Thanks for reading and watching, and thanks for your continued support!

-Adam Haritan