17 weeks. 12 wild mushrooms. 22 wild plants. 24 homegrown crops. It's the Steemit Iron Chef -- Haphazard Homestead Style! I hope you enjoy this collection of my entries into the 2017 Steemit Iron Chef contest. I know I enjoyed eating them - and sharing them with you!

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The Haphazard Homestead Collection of SIC Entries 2017

To see the original post for any dish, just click on its name - above the picture. Enjoy!

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Week 1 - Tomato

Wild Oregon Myrtle Tomato SoupHomestead harvest: Tomatoes, Onions, Italian flat-leaf parsley, Rose-of-Sharon flowers. Foraged: Oregon Myrtle leaf.

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Week 2 - Carrots

A Wild and Free Melange A Trois with Queen Anne's LaceHomestead harvest: Elephant garlic cloves, Jerusalem artichokes, Rose-of-Sharon flowers. Foraged: Wild carrot roots, Black nightshade berries (from Solanum not Atropa).

Week 3 - Beets

Grilled Beets Wild-Style - with Spruce Tree Balsamic Vinegar, Mallow "Cheesewheels", and Strong GreensHomestead harvest: Lutz beets, Italian flat-leaf parsley. Foraged: Common mallow seedpods, Wild arugula, Spearmint leaves, Spruce needles.

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A Fond Farewell to the First Steemit Iron Chef Series

Thanks, @progressivechef for coming up with the Steemit Iron Chef contest. I'm not very consistent on Steemit, but I'm so happy that I did not miss a single one of the 17 episodes in your contest. Your enthusiasm for this style of cooking was contagious. And your encouraging support of everyone made the challenge less daunting - even to an old homestead-style cook like me, used to simple cooking and not at all practiced in fancy presentations!

Thanks to all the Steemit Iron Chef cooks, too. I've seen such artistic style and super cooking! I've been inspired by your work. And want to eat it all! Finally, thanks to the supporters and sponsors of the Steemit Iron Chef contest. Without your upvotes, special coins, or SBD backing, this contest would not have been such a success.

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Week 4 - Corgettes - Summer Squash

Grilled Squash Blossoms Stuffed with Wild Lobster MushroomsHomestead harvest: Romanesco zucchini squash and flowers, Borage flowers, Candyland cherry tomatoes. Foraged: Lobster mushrooms, Wild chives.

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Week 5 - Pear - 3rd Place!

Homestead Pear SamplerHomestead harvest: Bosc, Comice, Bartlett, Large Korean, Chojuro, and Bella di Guigno pears, English walnuts, Rose-of-Sharon flowers, Borage flowers, Fennel flowers. Foraged: Smooth Sumac seedhairs, Common mallow seedpods, Spearmint leaves, Black nightshade berries (from Solanum not Atropa).

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Week 6 - Eggplant

Eggplant and Cattail Fluff Tiny BitesHomestead harvest: Kale, Juliet Cherry tomatoes. Foraged: cattail fluff from mature seedheads.

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Other SIC Entry Collections

I've enjoyed seeing other compilations - @jeefjagoe made the first one and it's such a great idea. I'd like to see collections from everyone that made multiple entries to the Steemit Iron Chef contest!

Here are links to their compilations posts that I know of, so far. If you've seen others, please let me know in the comments and I will add them to this list:

• @jeffjago Steemit Ironchef Roundup 2017 A Collection of Recipes
• @jaymorebeet GRATEFUL FOR 500 FOLLOWERS...AND MY IRONCHEF RECAP
• @globaldoodlegems My 17 weeks of Steemit-Ironchef

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Week 7 - Apple

Wild Apple-Sumac Snow Homestead harvest: Fennel flowers. Foraged: Spearmint leaves, Apples, Smooth Sumac seedhairs.

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Week 8 - Pumpkin

Savory Pumpkin Custard on a Bed of Baby Wild Greens - with Black Nightshade, Spruce Tree Dressing, and Flowers!Homestead harvest: Giant Pink Banana Squash, Rose-of-Sharon flowers, Borage flowers. Foraged: Black nightshade berries (from Solanum not Atropa), English Daisy flowers, Spruce tree needles, Wild arugula, Chickweed, Wild field mustard.

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Week 9 - Banana

Silver Dollar Banana Pancakes with Wild Rosehip-Pennyroyal SyrupHomestead harvest: English walnuts. Foraged: Rosehips, Pennyroyal leaves, Chickory flowers.

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Homestead Cooking vs. Steemit Iron Chef Cooking

I'm serious when I say the Steemit Iron Chef contest was a real challenge. Take a look at these comments from @exyle, last year, when I posted about Fall Salads from Weeds and Flowers - original photos and foraging ID quiz. Here's what my salad looked like:

Not sure if I may give critique but I feel like your end salad picture could use a better styling. It doesn't look very appetizing. Of course in a world where we need to forage to live this wouldn't matter but we are not there yet and as of yet we still eat with our eyes as well.

At least he didn't critique and run. He also offered some advice that matches well with what @progressivechef likes in the Steemit Iron Chef entries.

The problem is that on a photo you can't smell or taste the food so the picture must make the food shine. I think you made the plate like I make a plate when I'm home alone. A big mountain of food. It's delicious but it doesn;t work as well for a photo. Try to keep it simple.

I would suggest that you reduce the amount of food on the plate. Put the salad in the middle and use a complete white plate so the salad looks extra green. Also try to play with different angles when taking photos. Considering the salad is the star of the dish I would only put a little bit of the mushrooms /onions/potatoes on the plate with the salad. Now it's 50/50, taking away the stardom of the salad. You could even consider using a separate plate for the condiments and put them in the background of the photo.

I'll still post homestead-style cooking because that's what I really eat and how I eat it. But the Steemit Iron Chef contest taught me a lot about making food look better in a photo, that's for sure.

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Week 10 - Potato - 6th Place!

Saffron Fingerglings and Wild Garlic Potato Puree with Wild Chanterelle MushroomsHomestead harvest: Cherry tomatoes, Italian flat-leaf parsley leaves, Saffron. Foraged: Chanterelle mushrooms, Wild garlic bulblets, Wild chive leaves.

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Week 11 - Bell Pepper - 5th Place!

A Wild Faux-Ocean Plate - Bell Peppers with Wild Oyster and Shrimp Mushrooms Homestead harvest: Italian flat-leaf parsley, Jerusalem artichokes. Foraged: Shrimp mushrooms, Oyster mushrooms, Spruce tree needles, Black nightshade berries (Solanum, not Atropa).

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Week 12 - Cauliflower - 6th Place!

Grandma's Cauliflower - with Wild Waxy Cap MushroomsHomestead harvest: Italian flat-leaf parsley. Foraged: Late Fall Waxy Cap mushrooms.

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Recipes?

When it comes to wild foods, who knows what the harvest will be? It's unrealistic to look at a recipe and then try to forage those specific ingredients. And with a garden, what I cook depends on what I've harvested - not the other way around.

So my posts aren't really recipes and I didn't follow any recipes for my entries. I like how the folks at @gardenofeden use the term "food formula" instead of "recipe". With garden produce and especially with wild food, I work with what I have and figure something out!

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Week 13 - Orange - 3rd Place!

Orange-glazed Arkansas Wild Cat Steaks and Orange Salad - with Wild Nuts and Weeds - and they are Cat Mushrooms not real cats!Foraged: Swollen-stalked Cat mushrooms, Chickweed, Lemon balm, Wild chives, American chestnuts, Black walnuts

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Week 14 - Mushrooms - 6th Place!

Wild Mushrooms All The Way! - Fomitopsis Tea, Roasted Chanterelles, Deep-fried Elfin Saddles, with Candied Witches Butter and Cats Tongues! Foraged: Red-belted Polypore, Chanterelle, Cat's Tongue, Witches Butter, and Elfin Saddle mushrooms, Wild field mustard.

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Foraged Food is Real Food for Regular People

With the wild plants and mushrooms, I have learned how to identify them, what part to use, when they are in the right condition, the basics of preparing them, and any precautions to note. Even though there's no recipes here, I hope this collection shows how wild plants and mushrooms can be real food for regular people!

I eat a lot of wild plants and show you how, because I believe that we can all have lives that are richer, more secure, more grounded, and more interesting by getting to know the plants and the land around us – in our yards, our parks, and our wild places.

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Week 15 - Onion

Creamed Wild Winter Garlic Bulbs with Wild Yellowfoot Mushrooms Foraged: Wild garlic bulbs and leaves, Yellowfoot mushrooms.

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Week 16 - Avocado - 4th Place!

Honey-glazed Grilled Avocado with Roasted Avocado-Dandelion Root Puree Homestead harvest: Honey, Lutz beets. Foraged: Dandelion roots, Chickweed leaves and stems.

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Week 17 - Cook's Choice - Any Two Ingredients - 4th Place!

A Celebration of Forests and Fields! Homestead harvest: Red Pontiac potatoes, Cherry tomatoes, Large Korean Pear, Fennel leaves. Foraged: Shaggy Parasol mushrooms, Wild Carrot roots, Chickweed leaves, Cat's Tongue mushrooms, Apples, Rosehips, Spearmint leaves.

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2018 Steemit Iron Chef Is Almost Here!

I'm looking forward to the start of Steemit Iron Chef 2018 -- I keep telling myself, lol. I hope I can keep up with it for all 15 weeks in Round 1. But Steemit Iron Chef is a long contest series and who knows what the featured ingredients will be - or what I will be able to grow and forage from the wild?

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What Do You Think?

• Will you enter the 2018 Steemit Iron Chef contest?
• Do you grow any of your own fruits or vegetables?
• Do you forage any wild food?
• Which of my entries would you like to eat?
• Which ones would you NOT eat?

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Plant and Mushroom List

To see the scientific names and the plant parts I used for each entry, go to that specific post.

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Haphazard Homestead

foraging, gardening, nature, simple living close to the land
All content is 100% Haphazard Homestead!My YouTube channel: Haphazard Homestead