Awash With Wild Garlic (Ramsons) @ Valley Gardens, Saltburn-by-the-Sea

eggmeister (56)in #food • 6 years ago

Hello All,

A couple of times a year we take a trip from Leeds to Saltburn (via the Buck Inn, Great Ayton for a delicious pub lunch, I always plump for the Steak Pie & Chunky Chips!) and have a walk through the Valley Gardens (as well as a stroll along the beach). The weekend just gone (Saturday 14th April 2018) was one of those days.

This time of the year, the banks of the valley woodland are filled with tons (and I means TONS!) of Ramsons (Allium ursinum). This is an excellent wild edible and both the leaves and bulbs are really flavoursome though not as strong as true garlic. I tend to nibble on the leaves as we walk around, my daughter to; much to my wife's distain ;) LOL. Be careful though as they can be confused with Lily-of-the-Valley which is poisonous. It's easy to distinguish between the two as Paul Kirtley explains here Though for me, the easiest way is that Ramson leaves smell of garlic and Lily-of-the-Valley does not.

Other wild edibles that I've enjoyed there are young Hawthorn leaves and Sedge seeds (tall grass-like stalks that can be found there; predominantly growing on the river-bank. There are other edibles there to, all the usual suspects; Nettles, Plantain, Hogweed, dandelion, etc.

So folks, if you're in the area, the Valley Gardens in Saltburn-by-the-Sea is a pleasant way a family can spend a couple of hours. Woodland walks, play-areas, minature railway, tea-shop, river and of course the gardens :)

That's all from me for now.

Ooo, btw; I've just been on the quarry behind the housing estate this morning and grabbed a load of fresh 'nettle-tops' (top 4-6 inches) with the aid of scissors and gloves. I'll be making an omelette with them shortly; just think of all those lovely nutrients ;) I've slowly blanched them in the colander with boiling water to remove the 'sting' so I can man-handle them to chop them up. It was going to be a plain Nettle omelette but it seems we have some mushrooms and sausages that need eating ASAP so I'll be going FULL COMMANDO! regarding my omelette lunch now. I'm really looking forward to it :)