Spring Brings Inspiration

It’s been a while.

There are plenty of excuses for why I haven’t blogged in so long, but they would just be excuses. The truth is, I didn’t make time for blogging. But that’s okay! I forgive myself, and I hope you do too.

It’s difficult to get inspired to write about locally-themed meals in the dead of winter and early spring, when local ingredients are most rare. Perhaps that is part of the reason for my absence. But spring brings inspiration, and this time of year, inspiration is everywhere! Birds are singing out in celebration, flowers are blooming in every garden, and those succulent edible plants of early spring are just itching to get incorporated into a delicious spring meal.

This meal is about as local and seasonal as it gets this time of year. It’s also one of the easiest meals I have cooked in a while. Although I didn’t bother with a salad, a lovely mix of fresh greens and sprouts (ideally, sprouted yourself!) would be a lovely complement to these dishes.

Smoked Maple Ham Steak with Fiddleheads and Mushrooms

If you’re really lucky, you’ve got some fresh, recently made maple syrup handy (good for you! I am still using my “cooking syrup” which really just means it’s the stuff my Dad made probably 3 years ago or more).  If not, genuine local maple syrup is a must at the very least. I find that maple syrup and ham are a match made in heaven. The ham, in this case, is a cut of Northey Stables smoked ham steak, from the family farm.

Honestly, it almost feels silly to post this as a “recipe,” because it is so simple. But let this be a reminder of how a few simple ingredients can form a meal that is just as delicious as a complicated recipe!

1) Turn on the barbeque.

2) Pour some maple syrup on the ham. Flip the meat over a few times to marinade. Ideally you would have remembered to do this 6 to 8 hours ago. But I did it while pre-heating the barby, and that worked just fine.

3) Put the steak on the barbeque. Wait. Turn it over when it’s golden brown and slightly blackened in some places. Pour any remaining maple syrup on top. Forget about it and let your roommates turn the barbeque off for you. Let it sit and keep warm while you cook the vegetables.

Fiddleheads are an incredible Canadian delicacy which have grown in popularity of late. This was the first year I have ever seen them in the grocery store, and I was not alone-- after having bought them, I heard several of my friends saying this was the first time they had noticed them too. The great thing about fiddleheads is that they are really good for you. They are loaded with iron and potassium: all of the goodness of the rich woodland soil.

1) Preheat a frying pan with cooking oil.

2) Throw in some mushrooms and onions, chopped, or not, as desired. I like whole mushrooms. Yum.

3) Cook on medium-high heat until the mushrooms start to get fragrant, then add the fiddleheads. Cook for no more than 10 minutes more, and remove from heat (for health reasons, do not undercook!)

4) Add a dash of oregano and basil, or your seasoning of choice, and a bit of salt and pepper, to taste.

Enjoy!

I’ve got to say, my first experience cooking and eating fiddleheads was a pleasure. I would definitely eat them again, and again, and again!

Tomorrow I am going to harvest some local wild leeks. I am very excited about this. It’s something I used to do in the woods when I was pretty young, but I have never known anyone to get as excited about it as I do! I’ll be back soon with a recipe in which to enjoy this Canadian spring delicacy.