Yes, yes, the snow melts and bunnies come out and the squirrels look less sad and everyone save me wears less clothing and seems skinnier, but what’s really exciting about spring is that is it asparagus and fiddlehead season!

We had a friend who’s mother knew all the secret spots for fiddleheads and would, around this time appear with a huge bag just for us. We miss that so much. Fiddleheads really though are no mystery and one does not need to belong to a secret society to eat them. (and ahem, we are not referring to a certain publication of the same name who routinely rejects my submissions – Alice) In fact a fiddlehead is the unfurled frond of an Ostrich fern (matteuccia struthiopteris), commonly found for only about 2 weeks (April to May in eastern Canada) before they rise up and become lovely lush ferns. Fiddleheads grown all over North America, but are most popular in the north generally found growing wild in deciduous forests or alongside waterways. They get their name as they resemble … the head of a fiddle.

When steamed or boiled they have an earthy green taste, asparagus and green bean say most. They are also insanely healthy being full of vitamins A & C, and heaped with protein and antioxidants. The biggest problem is cleaning them as they are, essentially fresh from the ground and wild, so they cling to the earth and generally take it with them.

We love fiddleheads.