herbalicious tabula rasa
We live in the Antioch area, a town edged by the Delta to the west and thousands of acres of regional park hills to the east. It’s in them thar hills you’ll find the stars of this Provincial flat bread: Wild sage and rosemary.
At our first wild/foraged dinner banquet, we served this bread to show off the lovely sage we foraged in a local regional park.
It’s a stupid-simple recipe, this bread, but it’s a good staple if you want to find an easy way to use some wild herbs you find on your walks, hikes or runs.
Herb flat bread “leaf”
- 1 packet yeast
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 2 sprigs wild rosemary
- 2 sprigs wild sage
- 1 cup water warm enough to proof yeast
- 1 tbs local honey
- 2 tbs olive oil
- several cups of flour, depending …
OK, so start by mixing the honey and yeast in a little bowl with the warm water. Set it aside to foam up a bit
Add dry ingredients in a large bowl, mix it up good enough for the next step. Add oil. Sprinkle in some of those herbs.
Add yeast water … if it’s foamed up, that is (should take 10 to 15 minutes).
Mix, mix until it’s all mixedy mix mixed. Then add flour until it feels knead-able.
Place the dough ball on a well-floured cutting board and knead until it’s nice and springy. Pack it into a ball, then place it into an olive-oiled mixing bowl and cover it with a towel to rise.
… wait for it … and wait … turn on a TV show or something to bide your time …
After 45 minutes or more have passed, preheat the over to 410 degrees.
While the oven heats up, plop the dough onto a newly floured cutting board, knead it a couple times then cut the dough in two.
Take one dough ball and use your palms to flatten it into an irregular oval. Sprinkle the heck outta that oval with your wild herbs. Then take a knife and score a line down the center with a few slanted lines on each side to crudely resemble a leaf.
Do the same for that other dough ball.
Brush both with olive oil, then sprinkle more herbs on top. If you have a salt grinder, crack some salt over the pair of soon-to-be-toasty hot loaves.
Stick ‘em in the oven for 15 minutes or however long it takes to toast ‘em to a golden brown.
Serve stat!
Enjoy!
a beast of a feast
That sexy thing, for those wondering, is a mojito mixed from foraged prickly pear simple syrup, white rum, lime and backyard-grown mint. ‘Twas one of several offerings at EBHH’s first-ever wild/foraged dinners.
I’m super grateful to everyone who showed up. Got to see my old journo teacher, some former and future co-workers, a bunch of friends and family and the magic of a foraged feast coming together.
That’s my dad knifing cuts of freshly killed goat liver into the haggis stuffing. My dad really helped me pull this off. He planned a unique all-foraged/wild menu that showcased a bunch of local herbs, meats and veggies we collected in recent weeks.
A sample of what we ate:
- Elk/acorn haggis
- Provincial wild sage flat bread
- Wild almond spinach salad with garden-fresh tomatoes
- Foraged prickly pear mojitos
- Foraged pomegranate martinis
- Backyard poached pears in creme anglaise and pom sauce
- Garden-grown spicy Peruvian potatoes
- Fresh foraged figs
- Foraged lemon curd crepes with gramma’s lavendar-infused sugar
- Wine-marinated, slow-smoked young goat
The amount of time we put into this dinner amounts to way more than the 10 or so hours we put in today, by the way. For weeks my mom and I have been hiking to collect wild sage, rosemary, acorns and other things. But seeing all the manpower my dad, siblings and friends offered on the day of the event really adds to my appreciation. I couldn’t have done this without them.
I had a lot of fun. Can’t wait for the next event! I’ll post some recipes for some of the night’s dishes on this blog once I catch up on sleep. Thanks for reading … and happy foraging!
- Jenn :)
More photos …
COOKING WITH FORAGED ALMONDS
If you jog along the canal trail in Antioch that cuts past Contra Loma, you’ve probably noticed several varieties of fruit and nut trees hanging over backyard fences or just growing on the trail side. We found a tree just south of the reservoir that’s weighed down with more almonds than anyone cares to harvest, if the nuts rotting on the ground tell ya anything.
They can take a while to prepare, but it’s well worth it in the end if you want some free local almonds. You’ll save some money and enjoy them more since they cost you your time and effort.
After shucking the rotting skins and cracking those rock-hard shells, we asked a wise woman from Danville what to do with them and here’s the recipe she suggested …
SPICY-SWEET GLAZED ALMONDS
- 1 cup shelled wild almonds
- 2 tbs butter
- 2 tbs brown sugar
- 1 tsp curry
- 1 tsp ground cardamom
- 1 tsp cayenne (optional, but strongly suggested)
- 1 tsp marsala or other dark Indian spice mixture
- 1 tsp sea salt
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Then turn your attention to the stovetop where most of the magic happens.
Melt butter in a saucepan. Add brown sugar. Add spices. Stir until it starts to smell fragrant, like you’re in a Penzey’s store or something.
Add almonds. Stir around for a few minutes to crisp ‘em up.
Transfer almonds onto a baking sheet. Lightly sprinkle some more o’ that brown sugar to get that crackly glaze.
Let them roast for about 15 minutes, then check on ‘em and shake ‘em around. Let roast for another five or so minutes.
Then, let cool.
These will blow your mind. They’re good sprinkled over salads, over vanilla ice cream or just eaten by the fistful.
Enjoy!
Yipes! Did you know poms sell for $1.99 a piece at Trader Joe’s? And a “good deal” is 10 for as many dollars at Safeway.
Well out here in the Antioch-Brentwood-Oakley area, backyard poms are super abundant. Must be the Mediterranean climate.
In the span of a few days, we collected several dozen, enough for a gallon of juice and a huge bowlful of leftovers – and, um, that’s for FREE.
We’re thinking of using the juice for a few things this weekend … first as a simple syrup for pomegranate martinis and then as a flavoring for some creme anglaise to drizzle over fresh crepes.
Any other ideas?
This is the official blog of East Bay Hidden Harvest – an underground restaurant that features foraged ingredients and showcases the backyard bounty of the far East Bay.
We’re a group of foodies, trained chefs, avid hikers and all-around badass people who want to explore the “hidden harvest” in our own community.
Stay posted for upcoming events, dinners, hikes and cooking classes. Also, find us on Facebook to stay current on what we’re cooking up in our wild kitchen!
- Jenn
