Spruce Tip Recipes
Spruce and fir tips are offering up their citrusy bounty. There are so many ways to use these delicious bursts of lemon, orange and grapefruit flavors. In addition to using them in many of my wild sodas and pickle concoctions, I like to make a variety of salt and sugar mixes to use throughout the year.
First up, spruce tip molasses.
Spruce Tip Molasses
Simply layer spruce tips with a good quality brown sugar. Squeeze in the juice of one whole lemon. Each day make sure to gently shake the jar and burp it (untwist the top to let air escape).
Wait 5-7 days and you will have a thick, gooey syrup that you can use throughout the year for baking, cocktails, wild soda mixes, etc. Personally, I like to use a few tablespoons as a glaze over pork loin.
Spruce Tip Salt Mix (or Sugar!)
For spruce/fir tip sugar or salt, just use a blender to grind up the tips, mix in sugar or salt of your choice (about a 50/50 mix of tips to seasoning), then throw it in the dehydrator for 3-4 hours at 105F. The sugar is excellent as a fancy cocktail rim, in a simple syrup, for baking throughout the year, and amazing added to wild crafted sodas.
Fir and spruce tip salt can be made the exact same way and is excellent on chicken and lamb. There are so many fun and wonderfully tasty things to do with tips. Get out there and get some!
Join me for a spruce tip and ramp-heavy forage and wild food picnic this coming Saturday, May 17, only a few tickets left!
