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Fiddlehead Season ~ The Greening time of Year
May 21, 2013
Last year at this time we were packing for our one month move to Montreal. We also went backpacking and were celebrating Céine's arrival at the teen years with a special birthday.
The coming of the green was almost missed in the busyness of our life last May.
This summer, except for a couple trips, we are staying put. And most significantly, we're not moving. What a big difference that makes!
This month the days are rolling one into another, not rolling me over. I have marveled at each one. Some wet and chilly (toques and gloves are still kept in the front closet); others deliciously warm and summer-like. Each day, a bit more green arriving to our mountain valley.
And yesterday it occurred to me what to call this time of spring - these days of greening. This is fiddlehead season.
It is not early spring, when the days start to warm, but are still devoid of color. And this is not late spring either. Those few short weeks, mere days sometimes, where the greenery is fully out; and the temperatures and light are sublime before the full heat of summer. (The bugs of late spring are another matter entirely.)
This is the middle of the spring season and where we are, fiddlehead season describes it well. The fiddleheads are in abundance, and their green unfurling bespeaks spring's intentions.
So, fiddlehead season it is.
You can even eat fiddleheads, they are one of the first edible greens. Unfortunately I had a bad experience with them once (they tasted like swamp) and haven't been eager to try cooking them since. But we've got a bag of them in our fridge. Gifts from friends who came harvesting in our backyard, so I should probably give this local, wild edible another try.
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Alison on May 21, 2013, 10:58 p.m.
I love the step-by-step aspect of spring. A few trees are fully out in leaf here, but I love looking at the ones which are only just beginning to unfurl. They remind me of how much we look for those signs of spring, to know that the season is moving on.
You have an even longer wait for spring than we do here - so all the more reason to spot every little sign of spring, and enjoy it.
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Heather on May 21, 2013, 11:20 p.m.
We love fiddlehead time here! My favorite way to prepare them is steamed with a little butter salt and a splash of raw apple cider vinegar.
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chantelle on May 22, 2013, 4:55 a.m.
We lived in Northern Manitoba for a few years, and people were nuts about fiddleheads up there. The locals always said the best way to eat them was to boil them in butter. We don't have fiddleheads out here in Banff - I always wished we would have tried them before we left.
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renee on May 22, 2013, 12:08 p.m.
A lot of people I know recommend fiddleheads in butter also. And I wonder... is it the butter or the fiddleheads peole really love (smile). And you live in Banff? Wow, how lovely.
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Jess on May 24, 2013, 7:51 a.m.
We enjoyed (though not our favorite) fiddlehead pizza!
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Brenda Anderson on May 25, 2013, 3 a.m.
I spent over an hour cleaning and cooking up fiddleheads yesterday -so excited to try them for the first time - yuck - they all went in the garbage - won't be doing that again anytime soon :)
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renee on May 25, 2013, 1:43 p.m.
That's how I felt after our first time eating them. Glad I'm not the only one who doesn't like fiddleheads!
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Sarah m on May 21, 2013, 4:41 p.m.
"taste like swamp", oh, too funny... That's how beets are for me, I can never get them to not taste like dirt. Oh, well.
Enjoy this beautiful time of year! Sarah M
renee on May 21, 2013, 4:45 p.m.
Beets are not my family's favorite either.