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Fiddleheads: A New England Delicacy
By Marcia Passos Duffy
Click here for printer-friendly version
New Englanders are a frugal bunch.
Mention “free” and we’ll come in a hurry.
Free food falls into this category – as in
“free for the picking.” When spring
arrives in northern New England,
the free food abundant in the woods
is fiddleheads.
While the best fiddleheads spots are often
a guarded secret (akin to Provence, France’s delicacy, truffles) – finding them is a
special treat. These sprouts, in the shape of the top of a fiddle, are actually the
young coiled leaves of shoot of the ostrich fern. While nearly all ferns have
“fiddleheads” those of the ostrich fern are unlike any other – they are delicious!
According to the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, fiddleheads (which
appear during April and May) should be harvested as soon as they appear
within an inch or two from the ground. Brush out and remove the brown scales.
Wash and cook the “heads” in a small amount of lightly salted boiling water for
ten minutes or steam for 20 minutes.
Serve at once with melted butter. The quicker they are eaten, the more delicate
their flavor.
But before you run out to collect these little delicacies, be forewarned that the
Center for Disease Control has found a number of outbreaks of food-borne
illness associated with fiddleheads (nothing is simple, right?) But the outbreaks
occurred when the ferns were eaten raw or lightly cooked (as in sautéed,
parboiled or micro-waved). So…cook your fiddlehead thoroughly before eating
them…boil them for at least 10 minutes. After than, you can eat them right
away, or freeze or pickle them.
If you’re unsure of what a fiddlehead looks like (make sure you know what an
edible fiddlehead looks like because some ferns can be poisonous) or have no
desire to muck through the woods during mud season to pick them, you can
sometimes find them in your produce section if you live in New England or
Canada. If you can’t find them, ask your grocer (if he or she knows what they
are!) — fiddleheads can be special ordered.
Here’s 2 fiddlehead recipes adapted from my favorite Northern New England
cookbook, “The Nine Seasons Cookbook” by Pat Haley.
Fiddlehead Lemon Soup
1 cup fiddleheads
water
2 quarts chicken stock
salt
½ cup uncooked rice
2 eggs
½ cup fresh lemon juice
Boil fiddleheads in water to cover for 5 minutes (don’t worry, it will cook some
more later). Drain. Bring the stock to a boil and add salt to taste. Add rice,
cover, and simmer for 20 minutes. Beat the eggs with an electric beater until
light and frothy. Continue beating and add 2 cups of the hot stock to the eggs
but don’t stop beating or the eggs will curdle. When the eggs and broth are well
mixed, pour the whole mixture back into the remaining broth.
Beat in lemon juice, add the fiddleheads, and heat the entire mixture slowly, but
be careful not to boil it. Serve warm.
Fiddlehead Quiche
2 cups fiddleheads
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
½ teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1 unbaked 9-inch pie shell
½ cup shredded mild cheddar cheese
½ cup shredded Swiss cheese
¾ cup milk
¾ cup half & half
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wash the fiddleheads and steam until tender,
about 10 minutes. Mix fiddleheads with the lemon juice and salt. Set aside.
Separate one of the eggs. Beat the white and brush it on the bottom of the pie
shell, then set aside. Combine the remaining yolk and other 2 eggs. Beat
slightly.
Sprinkle cheddar cheese into the pie shell. Arrange the fiddle heads neatly on
top of the cheese.
Mix together the eggs, milk and half & half. Pour over the fiddleheads. Sprinkle
the Swiss cheese on top. Bake for 35 minutes or until set and golden brown.
Test by inserting a knife in the center of the quiche – if it comes out clean it’s
done! Remove from the oven and let set for 10 minutes before slicing and
serving.
About the author:
Marcia Passos Duffy is a freelance writer and the publisher of The Heart of New
England. Subscribe to her free weekly newsletter by sending a blank email to
HEART.
By Marcia Passos Duffy
Click here for printer-friendly version
New Englanders are a frugal bunch.
Mention “free” and we’ll come in a hurry.
Free food falls into this category – as in
“free for the picking.” When spring
arrives in northern New England,
the free food abundant in the woods
is fiddleheads.
While the best fiddleheads spots are often
a guarded secret (akin to Provence, France’s delicacy, truffles) – finding them is a
special treat. These sprouts, in the shape of the top of a fiddle, are actually the
young coiled leaves of shoot of the ostrich fern. While nearly all ferns have
“fiddleheads” those of the ostrich fern are unlike any other – they are delicious!
According to the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, fiddleheads (which
appear during April and May) should be harvested as soon as they appear
within an inch or two from the ground. Brush out and remove the brown scales.
Wash and cook the “heads” in a small amount of lightly salted boiling water for
ten minutes or steam for 20 minutes.
Serve at once with melted butter. The quicker they are eaten, the more delicate
their flavor.
But before you run out to collect these little delicacies, be forewarned that the
Center for Disease Control has found a number of outbreaks of food-borne
illness associated with fiddleheads (nothing is simple, right?) But the outbreaks
occurred when the ferns were eaten raw or lightly cooked (as in sautéed,
parboiled or micro-waved). So…cook your fiddlehead thoroughly before eating
them…boil them for at least 10 minutes. After than, you can eat them right
away, or freeze or pickle them.
If you’re unsure of what a fiddlehead looks like (make sure you know what an
edible fiddlehead looks like because some ferns can be poisonous) or have no
desire to muck through the woods during mud season to pick them, you can
sometimes find them in your produce section if you live in New England or
Canada. If you can’t find them, ask your grocer (if he or she knows what they
are!) — fiddleheads can be special ordered.
Here’s 2 fiddlehead recipes adapted from my favorite Northern New England
cookbook, “The Nine Seasons Cookbook” by Pat Haley.
Fiddlehead Lemon Soup
1 cup fiddleheads
water
2 quarts chicken stock
salt
½ cup uncooked rice
2 eggs
½ cup fresh lemon juice
Boil fiddleheads in water to cover for 5 minutes (don’t worry, it will cook some
more later). Drain. Bring the stock to a boil and add salt to taste. Add rice,
cover, and simmer for 20 minutes. Beat the eggs with an electric beater until
light and frothy. Continue beating and add 2 cups of the hot stock to the eggs
but don’t stop beating or the eggs will curdle. When the eggs and broth are well
mixed, pour the whole mixture back into the remaining broth.
Beat in lemon juice, add the fiddleheads, and heat the entire mixture slowly, but
be careful not to boil it. Serve warm.
Fiddlehead Quiche
2 cups fiddleheads
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
½ teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1 unbaked 9-inch pie shell
½ cup shredded mild cheddar cheese
½ cup shredded Swiss cheese
¾ cup milk
¾ cup half & half
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Wash the fiddleheads and steam until tender,
about 10 minutes. Mix fiddleheads with the lemon juice and salt. Set aside.
Separate one of the eggs. Beat the white and brush it on the bottom of the pie
shell, then set aside. Combine the remaining yolk and other 2 eggs. Beat
slightly.
Sprinkle cheddar cheese into the pie shell. Arrange the fiddle heads neatly on
top of the cheese.
Mix together the eggs, milk and half & half. Pour over the fiddleheads. Sprinkle
the Swiss cheese on top. Bake for 35 minutes or until set and golden brown.
Test by inserting a knife in the center of the quiche – if it comes out clean it’s
done! Remove from the oven and let set for 10 minutes before slicing and
serving.
About the author:
Marcia Passos Duffy is a freelance writer and the publisher of The Heart of New
England. Subscribe to her free weekly newsletter by sending a blank email to
HEART.
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