What you Should Know About Going Gluten-free and Grain-free

(Please note that this is a blog re-post that I have carried over from my original blog, back in 2013. The information is very important and still pertinent for those of you going gluten-free)

                               
  Today is groceries day, we ran around to about 4 different stores but something is always missing. It seems buckwheat is considered "exotic" as a food staple in my neck of the woods. Ugh! It's alright though because I will be making a stop in the next few days to grab my missing ingredients at the health food store. So, I have been in an allergy cycle for the last week that has been making me feel physically miserable even though I have been in a positive frame of mind. I had finally calmed my reactions to the final day or two of bloat and itchies and was in a great mood about it. 
Then I went to my Vietnamese joint I adore because I can actually eat gluten-free there, well, maybe not so good for me after all as I reacted to the rice noodles which is the same dish I have been having for a long time but the last few times I have been reacting to it and nothing has changed in the recipe. I am on friendly terms with the staff & Chef so it's easy to ask. Now it seems that I will be making more changes to my already complicated eating regimen. I am reacting to all manner of grains, gluten free grains!!! I had gluten-free rice crackers and my body flipped out, same with my quinoa bread and various other foods. Not cool. It seems this may be an autoimmune response which may be linked to my thyroid. More tests yippee!!!!!! NOT! 
Actually, it deserves a good giggle. It's become de rigueur to have complications somewhere along the line for most gluten-free eaters. I read a whole bunch of info on a great blog at:
Betterbydrbrookewordpress.com

This is what she had to say and I think it's going to help save my life and bring balance back to my days.
                      
Why You're not Losing Weight on a GF Diet.

You Could Be Reacting To The Gluten Free Grains You’re Now Eating
A sensitivity to gluten increases the chances that you’re also sensitive to many of the foods you’ll turn to on a gluten free lifestyle including sorghum, millet, tapioca, amaranth, quinoa, rice, hemp, corn, and potato. These foods do not contain gluten but may still be a problem for you, this is called “gluten cross reactivity”. And if you’ve got a gluten issue, I’ve got some really bad news: coffee and chocolate are among the most common cross reactors. Tragic, I know.

Consider a grain free diet and utilize non-grain based starches such as sweet potato, pumpkin, squash, and legumes (note: autoimmune patents are also at high risk for reacting to the lectins in legumes, sorry! Best for you folks to leave them out as well.) Cyrex Labs offers a gluten cross reactivity panel if you’ve committed to gluten free and wondering which grains, etc might be good alternatives for you. Visit www.cyrexlabs.com and look at Array 4.

You May Have Increased Intestinal Permeability (AKA Leaky Gut)
This means larger proteins are getting through a leaky intestinal barrier causing inflammation and winding up you immune system. A “leaky gut” is due to inflammation in the gut that has caused a bit of swelling in the cells of your intestines, damaging the junctions between the cells allowing larger proteins to get through. Normally only small things pass through such as a single amino acid or a molecule of glucose. When these larger proteins end up in our blood stream where our immune system sees them and attacks, causing inflammation, bloating, puffiness and trouble shedding fat.

This creates inflammation in and of itself, which makes it hard to lose weight, but it also increase the chance that you’re have any of those cross re-activities I just mentioned.

We can get a leaky gut from years of a bad diet, eating foods that we are sensitive to, taking antibiotics or doing anything that disrupts the delicate balance of probiotics in our gut, various medications, having hypothyroidism or being under high stress.

Gluteomorphins May Be At Play
You may be reacting to gluteomorphins, a byproduct of our own digestion of gluten which act in the brain on opiod receptors causing a “high”. When we take that away, you obviously feel worse for a period of time as you go through a withdrawal period. Crazy huh? Our food is literally medicine!

When people have this reaction, they not only feel pretty lousy when they first come off gluten but their cravings for it sky rocket. If they manage to stick to their gluten free guns, they will usually end up eating a lot of other carbs to satisfy the cravings causing weight loss to stall….or worse, causing a weight gain.
Hidden Exposure
Despite your best efforts – you may still be eating gluten. Here’s a lengthy list of at least some of the more common places you’ll see it:

Gluten Containing Grains:
Wheat
Barley
Spelt
Kamut
Rye
Triticale
Most processed cereal
Oats (unless specifically labeled gluten free and note: oats are common cross reactors as well)
Couscous
Bulgar wheat

Short List of Commonly Used Gluten Derivatives:

Alcohol made from grains: beer, whisky, vodka (unless purely potato), Scotch, most liquors and cheaper wines.
Artificial coloring additives
Chewing Gum
Battered Foods (i.e. fish sticks, fried appetizers, occasionally sweet potato or regular fries) and foods fried in same oil as battered foods (French fries).
Biscotti, pastries and any baked good made from flour, not specified as gluten free
Bran
Many juices and fruit drinks
Sauces in general, horseradish sauce and most pre-made salad dressings (unless gluten free)
Canned meat containing preservatives, canned vegetables (unless in water only)
Items containing hydrolyzed vegetable protein (often made with wheat)
Caramel (other than from US and Canada)
Imitation seafood (usually made with a starch, common in sushi)
Instant hot drinks (coffee, tea, hot chocolate, etc)
Ketchup and most condiments (anything made with modified food starch has corn and/or wheat)
Rice syrup (may contain barley malt)
Soups (most commercially made canned or frozen soup)
Spices including white pepper, curry powder, bouillon cubes or powder
Soy sauce (except Tamari wheat free soy sauce) and most Chinese sauces
Malt
Veined cheeses (may be made from molds that may be of bread origin)
Mustards (unless specifically gluten free, read label for modified food starch)
Margarines
Sausages
Flavor enhancers including MSG (monosodium glutamate), glutamic acid, monopotassium glutamate, ammonium glutamate

Note: gluten free grains include rice, millet, quinoa, buckwheat, amaranth and teff.

And one final thing: gluten may simply not be as inflammatory for you as it is your friend who had the skies part and the heavens sing when they cut it out. In this case, there may be another reason why your weight loss has plateaued and some gluten containing foods on occasion will probably not make or break your health.

So, if going gluten free was less dramatic than you’d hoped, consider these things and take another pass accounting for the reasons above.


Thank you Dr. Brooke, so I am now going to clean & cleaner eating and praying for positive results. I will be incorporating digestive enzymes, good probiotics, Aloe Vera whole leaf juice, liquid iron, and protein that is allergen friendly. My beloved who is also a weight trainer specializing in sports nutrition recommends Iso Pure. I will get back to you on all of this. 
In the meantime, I am happy to post a snapshot of my fridge which I feel very blessed about being filled with a powerhouse of healthy foods. Thank you God for making such things available to those of us in need, I know how lucky we are.
Here is what a clean eating fridge looks like:

Water Bath Canning Tomatoes Homesteading 101

                                     

Bonjour sweetlings'!

Today is covering a very basic, good to know-how, water bath canning method for those end-of-summer, ripe, tasty, tomatoes.
Last summer, when I participated in some open summer markets, I got into a very serious discussion with a man about saving summer fresh tomatoes, so you could enjoy them all year round.
I confessed to being a canning newb in this department but did have two cases of Quebec field tomatoes that I was not sure what to do with.
Well, said Monsieur had loads to tell and thus began a very lively back & forth, with other market goers chiming in, about water bath canning methods, levels of acidity, and the joys of opening fresh summer tasting tomatoes in freezing cold January.
Say no more, I told the man, I am sold!
Truthfully, that winter fresh tomato bit totes had me, and I decided to go home and do the do. Then I hit a little snag in the best of intentions world.
Turns out that the tomatoes were way too delicious and we ate 40 lbs in two weeks! Okay, we did share some, dehydrate some, but honestly, it was a tomato food fest. Everything from bruschetta, soup, roasting, stews, and humble sandwiches, managed to put such a significant dent in those 40lbs, that there were not enough left to can. Wah wah...
                                          
   This year, I promised would be different and it has been. I have managed to buy a 20 lb case of Québec field tomatoes at the darling price of $9 and have canned 80% of them. The rest I am making homemade ketchup with and indulging in the occasional tomato sandwich-eureka! Sounds like a perfect lunch idea for today. Hehheh.

Before I launch into the how to, I am including two simple charts, (one from the university of Minnesota, the other from https://realfoodrn.com/using-scobys-to-balance-garden-ph/ ) that show the acidity of items one often uses in canning, and the affinity forplant ph preferences in the garden.
Why are acidity levels important?
Good question. Harmful bacteria, that can be deadly to us humans, cannot thrive in acidic environments. It is important to use acid to neutralize dangerous stuff like botulism, which loves sitting in an anaerobic (zero oxygen) environment, which we so kindly provide when canning. Adding acid to food stuffs when canning, ensures safety, brightness of colour, and helps maintain freshness along with flavour; all a boon for intrepid canners!
I can already hear the question tumbling in your heads, but aren't tomatoes really acidic?
Another great question! Though tomatoes may seem very high acid foods, their ph levels fall into a lower acid plane, thus making the addition of acid a necessity. This is easily rectified by using something as simple as lemon juice. see the charts and then continue below for the process, it is the perfect time as these summer beauties are on their way out.

                          

                            


So, first step is getting the most beautiful, fresh, ripe, not rotting, tomatoes you can. I always recommend farmer's markets at this time of year for solid reasons.

1-Support local farmers, as a consumer, where you choose to spend your dollars speaks volumes as to the kind of world you want to live in and leave for the next generation.

2-Local farmers have more genetic diversity in their crops because many use heirloom seeds and organic farming practices, this means a greater variety along with less GMO's to make you and yours, along with our bee populations sick. SAVE THE BEES!

3-You cut out the middle man, it is coming in straight from the fields, usually the same day and heads directly to the shelves. Farm to table is the way to go.

4-Freshness and variety along with early morning get-go, on your part, means greater quality beginning and end product for you and your loved one's. See #3 if you need further clarification.

5-It is a vibrant, fresh, and aliveness that you will never find in mass produced grocery store holdings. Believe me when I tell you, a good farmers market, will have you feeling so good!

6-It is a perfect time for a family outing, this is a teachable moment for old and young alike. I find new things whenever I go to the market, most recently, a very cool eggplant, that was round, hails from Italy, and contains loads less water; making it perfect for grilling and pickling!

7-As a professionally trained Chef, we know quality is greater than quantity, however, when nature's bounty has arrived, trust me, at the farmers market you WILL find both & for fabulous prices!

Here are the loverly tomatoes we have had this season, please keep in mind that field tomatoes are not perfect or always uniformly "pretty", in the grocery store sense. That is what you want, the tomatoes you are getting will taste better than hothouse one's and will prevent perfectly good produce from ending up in land-fills, contributing to methane gas emissions and thus the demise of our planet. Lower your expectations for the outside looks and learn to appreciate touch, smell, taste, and inner beauty. You really cannot judge a book or tomato by it's cover!
                           

Prep your mason jars and lids, by washing them well, making sure you have enough of jars, seal lids, and screw tops. Then fill a canning pot with water to 3/4 full, in a jar basket, place in your mason jars that need to be filled with water too, add more if need be but be careful because too much will boil over. Turn head to medium high, bring up to boil and turn off immediately, while still hot, after about 15 minutes, place the snap lids in the water. This will ensure no bacteria but will not melt the seal part to the snap lid, that you need. At this point, I make sure I am ready for all the steps to come, I prep a large baking tray with a dishtowel, have my ladle, canning funnel, iar removal spatula, snap lid, magnetic wand grabber, and bowls, all good to go.
Now, onto tomatoes.
You need to thoroughly wash your tomatoes, no dirt must remain as this can be a botulism home. Once washed, get a large stock pot of water boiling, score an X (not too deep) on the bum of the tomatoes. You will need a large bowl with lots of ice-cubes and more ice-cubes at the ready. This is to quickly cool the tomatoes upon removal, so they do not keep cooking. I buy a large bag of ice at the corner store to be safe.
Once your water is boiling, add 4-5 tomatoes at a time to the water, carefully, depending on size. We had some that were huge, I did 2-3 at a time. Leave in for 30-45 seconds. Remove using a slotted spoon, and place immediately in the ice water bath bowl. Leave in there for about 1-2 minutes, the skin will start to peel off. That is a good thing that you want!
Once you have done this, peel all the skin off of the tomatoes, (I keep these skins and either freeze them for making tomato jelly or ketchup at a later date, they hold loads of flavour)
                                       

Next, you will begin to slice, then chop your tomatoes that no longer have their skins, into medium to large dice, depending on what you use them for.
                                     

  

Once this is done, you will place them in a bowl. Now, CAREFULLY, remove the mason jars, empty the water, and place them on the tray you prepared. Place the canning funnel on a mason jar and using a ladel, begin filling with tomatoes. I fill it to an inch below the neck, you must leave 1/4 inch head space for the safety seal to be able to happen, which includes the lemon juice you add. Then add 2 Tbsp of lemon juice for 500ml jars and 3 Tbsp lemon juice for 1L jars. I made 6 125ml jars and added 1 Tbsp of lemon juice to those. I made three different size jars because I need differing amounts, depending what I am making. Soup requires 1 L jar of tomatoes, Stews or Sauces 500 ML and sometimes sautées require 125 ML size. You will know what you use them for. I have not given you the number of jars because this will be dependent on the amount of tomatoes you buy. I will give you my amounts at the end of this based on my 20 Lb purchase.
Once you have packed the tomatoes and added lemon juice, clean the rims and sides, add the snap lids, and add the rings. Screw the rings finger tight aka snug but not tightened. Should you need to see an easy breakdown pic, see below from pickyourown.org.
This simple picture, step by step guide, comes from:
http://www.pickyourown.org/water_bath_canning_directions.php
                       

Now that all is ready, it is time to place your filled mason jars back in their basket and put the water back on to boil. I bring it up to a boil, reduce to high heat, and allow to process for 15 minutes. Then you remove them CAREFULLY, from the water, place on your cloth lined tray, and allow to cool. The lids will make a POP popping sound and the lids will be sucked in in the middle. That means you got a seal and these jars will last 1 year in a cool, dark place. If this does not happen, you must not leave these on a shelf. Place them in the fridge, and eat them within 1 month. Alternatively, you can remove the snap lid, try using a new one, make sure the jars are not over filled, and process them once more.
                   

   

On the right is the jar waiting to be processed, and on the left is a jar that has already been processed. There will be some colour change, this is normal.

Do not forget to label what is inside, along with the date and year. This is important to prevent spoilage and to know what is in your pantry, when you go to use your canned items 4 months from now.

My total tomato haul= 2x20 Lbs tomatoes, used about 1 case for a variety of stuff. Canned 1x 20Lbs=
3x 1 L jars
12x 250ML jars
6x 125ML jars

I highly recommend researching properly and buying or borrowing from a library, some small batch canning books or food preservation books. I am constantly learning and there are many wonderful resources available to you, take advantage!
I am only offering tips on water bath canning methods for mow, as I do not yet own a pressure canner. If you would like to learn more about pressure canning, please click on the links below. I am including a link to buy a pressure canner, which is supposed to be some good one's; I myself am eyeing the 30 Qt all American  model. Remember a pressure canner is what you want, not the same as a pressure cooker at all!

                   
http://www.simplycanning.com/pressure-canners.html
             
Thanks so much for stopping by, leave any questions down below, I love to hear from you. Don't forget to subscribe & happy canning!

https://www.attainable-sustainable.net/pressure-canning/

https://survivallife.com/canning-jar-guide/ 

Blueberry Syrup (4 Ingredients)

Awwwww yeah! Blueb season is upon us!

I am on a blueberry addiction, which is quite common for me. I get cracked out on a delicious fruit or food item and binge on it for about 4-6 weeks, then I don't want to know about it for at least half a year or more. Luckily it's always healthy stuff I go crazy for and I think I am easily on my 20th pint of blueberries in 3 weeks, shhhhh it's our little secret. Mwuah hahahaha 
As it turns out, two of my pints were not tasty. They were sad, gritty, bland, and lonely bluebs. So, I say, when life gives you bad blueberries you make blueberry syrup to smother your pancakes, Crêpes, ice cream, mini shortcake, everything. Eat all the blueberries, all of the time!!!!!!! 
I like this recipe because it's super quick, easy peasy, and has only 4 Ingredients. I know, super awesome sauce with a cape! 
Here you are peoples, now go out there and get you some blueberries. 

BLUEBERRY SYRUP:

Ingredients:
1 Pint washed blueberries 
3 Tbsp grade B maple syrup 
1 Tsp vanilla extract 
Small pinch pink sea salt

Method:
-Place all ingredients in a small saucepan, bring to simmer, cook for 3-5 minutes. Don't overcook, you want blueberries to still be looking like their round pillows of antioxidant goodness but softened a bit. 
-Turn off and remove from heat, let sit 5 minutes and pour into serving container. The pectin in the blueberries will thicken this up and you will have a great syrup saucy consistency. 
Serve over whatever you desire, wrap it, keeps in the fridge 3 days. 

Real Homemade Lemon Curd, Meringue Pie!

                   
A lemon kissed, summery helloodles, one & all!

I love love love a real, from scratch, homemade lemon curd. Nothing compares to the rich, unctuous, tart & tangy, silk, of a bright curd. We have company coming today who have absolutely zero food allergies so I bought a bake yourself, gluten-filled yuckie crust for them, (Even touching flour makes me sick.) & I am making a mini GF pie in a bowl on the side for me. Do not be deterred from having guests who don't need to stick to GF, instead work with it. Usually I make my own crusts from scratch without gluten but my injuries are acting up & this was short notice. So here is a breakdown of what to do to achieve a brilliant lemon curd, feel free to substitute limes instead, and this recipe calls for butter. I tolerate butter but no other dairy. If this is a problem for you, I recommend doing a combo of a fruity mild olive oil 1/3 cup and add three Tbs of cold pressed organic coconut oil. I add a pinch of sea salt to this mix when melted, stir it well, then freeze it so I can break it into cubes and whisk the emulsion into submission. Be aware this will change the taste of your curd and use a VERY light olive oil that was cold pressed. Feel free to cut it with grape seed oil if you like, although olive oil and lemon has become a very popular combo in the baking world, as of late. Up the sugar and vanilla a touch if needed. 
So without further ado I present the recipe. As always it is gluten free and I added 1/4 more of everything to have enough for my extra, on the side safe GF dessert. Pics follow minus the ingredient pics- I forgot. 
I also will add what you need for the meringues and simple GF crust to make a pie.

Real Lemon Curd:

-4 egg yolks (I used 6 to have extra) keep the whites separated with no yolks aside for the pie!

-1 tsp real vanilla

-2 lemons zested

-2/3 C lemon juice no pits!

-1/2 C sugar (fine)

-4 small drops organic natural yellow colour (I buy from www.naturesflavors.com)

-1/2 C demi-sel (half salted) butter, cut in cubes and kept chilled in the fridge. Never ever room temperature or melted!

Method:

-Fill a small pot 1/4 of the bottom with water and heat on medium high heat, don't boil! Just under a simmer, no bubbles break the surface.

-In a medium sized bowl whisk together, yolks, sugar, and vanilla, until well mixed.

-Continue to whisk & slowly add the lemon juice, so as not to burn the yolks with the acid. (Yes, the acid can "cook" the yolks)

-Whisk in zest and then place your bowl on the pot filled 1/4 of the way with water that you heated. Make sure the water does not touch the bottom of your bowl, if it does empty some as you have too much. This is your double boiler to cook your egg mixture more slowly without direct heat that often results in scrambled lemony eggs instead of lemon curd.

                  

-Now constantly whisk your mixture, you want to cook and thicken your curd. Be aware that this process takes time and you can NOT stop the whisking. That means no walking away, no phone calls, zero distractions! Become one with the curd. (giggles are acceptable)

-As it cooks and you constantly whisk, switching hands as you need to rest one or the other, you will notice the colour and texture will change. It needs to feel thicker when you whisk and must coat the back of a spoon. Chefs call this, Napper la cuillier. 

-When it coats a spoon and you can draw a line through it with your finger that holds, immediately remove it from the heat.

              

-Now for more whisking, this is the exciting part! All the time whisking, add 1-2 cubes of the CHILLED butter. Whisk each one in thoroughly before adding the next one. This is am emulsion, you must be sure the oil is well incorporated each time before continuing or else your curd will break and become all streaky, fat separated, & it will be time to try try again. ((hugs if this happens))

               

-Keep going until all the butter is incorporated, I sometimes need to place the bowl back on the double boiler for 15-25 seconds to warm it again if the butter drops the temp too quickly. Just be careful when doing this.

                

-Add your food colouring to brighten up the yellow a bit by whisking it a few seconds.

-At this point you may keep your curd in a jar in the fridge and feel free to eat it with fresh blueberries, or on scones or toast, or use in a few days to fill a cake. Or snack it straight out of the jar, Mine never lasts more than 3-5 days because it always gets eaten. I found this pic on the net of curd in a jar as I seem to have deleted mine, but you get the point.

Below is mine as I "taste test" the batch, don't allow anyone to deter you from this task. It is of utmost important that you do this, you are taking one for the team. You're so good, all you do is give, give, give. (hehheh)

            

-Chill the pie with Saran wrap touching the curd, so as not to get skin.

-Let chill for 4-5 hours. Put the meringue on it just before serving. Recipe follows.

Okay, now I am going to walk you through pie crust and the dreaded meringue. I have come to understand that people feel very intimidated by meringue, it's really quite simple and looks oh so elegant. I am going to do a home style meringue for you today, there is another recipe that gives a much smoother and higher end, professional, finished product; but that involves sugar syrup, proper temp, exact moments, and a big mixer. So...not today.

So for the crust, I can't even touch gluten anymore so the guest crust is one I bought in the store and baked as per the package directions, making sure to dock it (poke holes) using a fork. It's the big guy in the pics on the right.

Gluten free crust for my single serving used 3/4 C of ground almonds, 2 Tbsp of melted organic coconut oil, and 1tsp of Organic honey.

           

I mixed it all together and pressed it into the bowl gently, just like graham crumbs.

Then I took a damp new paper towel and cleaned up the bowl before pouring the filling into my bowl and then the rest into the cooled pie shell.

           

               

               

                 And they looked very pretty once the curd was in:

               

Now for the meringue:

Use the 6 room temperature egg whites with absolutely no yolk or fat in them. They won't whip up if there are even trace amounts of fat in them or on any of your equipment. Start whipping them with a hand blender until they are foamy.

             

Add 1/4 C of fine sugar and continue beating. You will notice that with the addition of sugar the texture changes and you start to get a glossy product which begins to rise very quickly.

         

            

Top left are soft peaks, keep whipping until you get stiff perks but not beyond that or your meringues will become rocky and then they will fall. Never to rise again and then you must start anew and try try again. ((hugs if this happens with a spot of tea))

On the right is what you are looking for, big brawny tough guy meringues that hold their curves. I actually went a bit too far and they ended up a bit grainy, I had to walk away from them for a while to answer a call and ended up needing to re-whip them because they began to fall, don't do that! My family is not picky so they got the pie with the grainy meringue. Eat it and like it!

Heat your oven on High broil.

Now start spreading on your chilled curd filled pies my friends and just have fun spreading and lifting to make peaks, or pipe it if you like. 

                

              

Now with your oven mitts on and with great loving gentleness, place those beauties on the rack and turn them every 20 seconds just til they get perfectly golden. This happens VERY quickly, like, less than 2 mins. so don't leave or answer phones or get distracted. Otherwise all your effort will be for naught!

This is what it all looks like along with the finished pretties!

               

            

             

Enjoy! 

BTW, if it's a really hot summer day, really keep these in the fridge, super cold, and don't leave them out before cutting and serving, They will melt and your curd will NOT hold-up. You can add a packet of dissolved gelatin to the still warm curd to help it hold its shape if you need to travel with this pie in warmer weather.

The Best Citrus Queen Anne's Lace Jelly Recipe and Foraging

Good Glorious and Gorgeous Morning!

Today, I am telling you all about my summer Queen Anne's Lace foraging experiences and the citrus Jelly I am making with them.

*Very important to note before I tell my tale, should you choose to forage it, you must be exceedingly careful NOT to confuse Queen Anne's Lace with Hemlock*

Below there's information on Queen Anne's Lace from the following site:
http://www.ediblewildfood.com/queen-annes-lace.aspx

QUEEN ANNE'S LACE:

Queen Anne’s lace earned its common name from a legend that tells of Queen Anne of England (1665-1714) pricking her finger and a drop of blood landed on white lace she was sewing. Belonging to the carrot family, Queen Anne’s lace is a biennial that is also known as wild carrot. Early Europeans cultivated Queen Anne’s lace, and the Romans ate it as a vegetable. American colonists boiled the taproots, sometimes in wine as a treat. Interestingly, Queen Anne’s lace is high in sugar (second only to the beet among root vegetables) and sometimes it was used among the Irish, Hindus and Jews to sweeten puddings and other foods.

Distinguishing Features: The Queen Anne's lace flower resembles lace, and oftentimes the flower has a solitary purple dot in the centre. In addition the root smells like carrots!

Flowers: Queen Anne’s lace flowers have a flat-topped white umbel, sometimes with a solitary purple flower in the center. These flowers bloom from late spring until mid-fall. Each flower cluster is made up of numerous tiny white flowers. The flower cluster start out curled up and opens to allow pollination. The cluster then rolls itself shut again, like a reverse umbrella when it goes to seed at the end of the season.

Leaves: Feathery leaves resemble those of the domestic carrot. The bases of leafstalks are broad and flat. Queen Anne’s lace leaves also closely resemble the leaves of the poison hemlock, fool’s parsley and water hemlocks, all poisonous cousins of Queen Anne’s lace.

Height: Wild carrot can grow tall, most average about 1 metre tall.

Habitat: Queen Anne’s lace is found in fields, meadows, waste areas, roadsides and disturbed habitats. They are very hardy and thrive in a dry environment.

Edible parts: Using first year Queen Anne’s lace plants are recommended. Roots are long, pale, woody, and are finger-thin and are used in soups, stews and in making tea. First year leaves can be chopped and tossed into a salad. Flower clusters can be ‘french-fried’ or fresh flowers can be tossed into a salad. The aromatic seed is used as a flavoring in stews and soups.

 Similar Plants: Poison Hemlock, Fool's Parsley 

This is a picture from when I was foraging at a later date by myself, I was still a bit sleepy as it was 6am when I went out to pick Q.A.L. 
I almost grabbed Hemlock by mistake and went, whoo hoo hoo! 
No touchie that stuff Kiki!
That was when I thought, it might be a good idea to take a side by side pic to help any of you foragers that might be interested. 
The Hemlock is on the left & the Queen Anne's Lace is in my hand on the right. You can see how a novice could easily make a mistake and forage something, literally, deadly! Remember that Hemlock has a center of small yellow flowers with a cluster of white small petals around; whereas Queen Anne's Lace looks like a bird's nest, has white flowers and a very tiny purple "heart" center.

Below is the Queen Anne's Lace with that purple "heart", it is very small but easier to tell the difference if you are unsure. Remember that sometimes they already fall off, so you might not always see it. If you are not sure, ask, use a floral finder app (yup, those exist) and walk away without, if you are really unsure. It is always best to err on the side of caution.

I received a call from Lady T and she told me that all the Queen Anne's Lace was out and in full bloom.
As it turned out my son needed a serious getaway from the city; so I asked him to come with, for a day of foraging, feeding chickens, and country fresh air. When we first arrived,we could see my son decompress in 10 minutes; it's amazing what getting away from the pressures and speed of the city can do to a person. We both agreed that moving out to the country one day would be something to work for, in our own respective houses of course!
It was beautiful and we got a lot of foraging done, I did not take pictures because it was by the side of a mildly busy road, was really hot, way too sunny, and we had a lot to do.
I did not feel right taking pictures, which could have been dangerous and made us slow down. We were at it for about 2-3 hours and then we ran to get something icy and cold to drink.
At the house, Lady T made them both some yummy gyros with tzatziki sauce and bbq chicken. I was breaking my juice fast, I chose to eat a light salad and drink a freshly made savoury juice.
We had fresh blueberries for dessert and enjoyed a quiet end to the day.

This was one of the several bags we managed to forage, just a little tip for you intrepid foragers. Do not bring these bags in your house!  These along with any other flowers you forage will have so so so MANY bug critters and you DO NOT want an infestation. It does not take long for a nest of bugs to set up shop in your home, don't risk it! 
I leave them out back and when I am ready the next morning, I grab a bowl, a big garden fork, and then I proceed to CAREFULLY and GENTLY shake out the flowers. Fork remove any beetles and unwelcome critters. Do not leave longer than overnight to begin processing these flowers, as they are so delicate and will end up as a loss. They are just not made to last long, once picked.

These were what I started with:

And then I had these cute tiny blossoms:

It's time-consuming, I suggest some fav tunes, sitting comfortably, and asking for some help from hands that can be patient and gentle.

This is how they look when all the flowers are removed, feel free to compost these:

By the time we finished picking everything apart, we had my pitcher full and I could proceed with my steeping process, to draw out the flower flavour, for jelly making.

I do not have a pic of the actual steeping process, to be honest, it looks a tad yuckie. I get that that is not yummy sounding at all, as such, I decided that you did not need to be exposed to the unappealing part. I did manage a pic of the strained steeping liquid; which was a beautiful rosy blush, infused with Queen Anne's Lace loveliness. It's below with the steeping liquid recipe.

This is the glorious and perfectly pretty jelly that I got from this wonderful citrusy floral combo.

I tested it on waffles, just to be sure that it was the proper level of deliciousness before I shared it here. Fear not my lovelies, it is a citrusy wonder of scrumptiousness! I am selling this in my Etsy shop, until supplies last. This is obviously a seasonal, short-run item, but I managed to get in a few foraging sessions and made loads of steeping liquid. When I went the last time, there were smaller flowers but very abundant.

 This has given me a few jars more than anticipated, I am excited to share them with you in the soon to re-open shop (It is really, really, almost opening day!). I may do a giveaway with this flavour, let me know in the comments if that would be something you would like; I could even add one of my jars of Lilac & Pineapple Jelly as a floral taster giveaway set. The Lilac & Pineapple Jelly is so pretty and is one of my best sellers, people really adore it. It looks like this and tastes heavenly:

Does that look yummy or what? As I said, comment down below if you would like this. as a giveaway contest.

Here is the recipe for those of you who want try this out in the summer, picking/foraging Queen Anne's Lace starts at the end of July and goes into the earlier weeks of August.

THE BEST CITRUS QUEEN ANNE'S LACE JELLY
This recipe makes about 4x250ml mason jars

Ingredients:

2 1/2 Cups Steeping liquid (recipe follows)
4 Cups Sugar
2 Pouches liquid Certo pectin (85 ml each pouch)
2 tsp Powdered sugar-free pectin (I used Bernardin brand)

Method:
-In a non-reactive medium sized pot, heat steeping liquid and sugar until melted at a medium high temperature; making sure to stir constantly.

-Once sugar is melted, bring liquid to a rolling boil, add pectins, cook at a boil for no more than 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.

-Skim scum and ladle into still warm, sterilized jars

-Process in a water bath canner, bring to a rolling boil and process for 10-15 minutes.

-Remove jars carefully and place on a rack, allow to cool completely.

-Chill in refrigerator before eating, as this really tastes best when it is cold. Ty it on toast, waffles, it would be really great with scones or as a filling in a sponge cake with whipped cream.
Oh yeah! The possibilities are endless.


CITRUS QUEEN ANNE'S LACE STEEPING LIQUID:

Ingredients:

4 Cups Foraged, bug-free, Queen Anne's Lace blossoms, gently removed from the plant stems.

8 Cups Citrus liquid such as orange juice or grapefruit juice, I used pink grapefruit. (pulp-free)

Method:

-Place blossoms in a non-reactive bowl, that can handle hot liquid, large enough to contain the blossoms and the liquid. Do not put the liquid with the blossoms yet!

-In a large pot, heat the liquid, once it reaches scalding (do not boil), gently pour over blossoms and stir until all are covered. The flowers will float to the top, this is fine.

-Allow to cool to room temperature, cover and place in fridge overnight.

-Using cheese cloth covered strainer, strain the steeping liquid with a bowl to catch the strained liquid underneath.

-You may need to do this twice to be sure you have a clear liquid, now you may use the amount required for the jelly recipe up above. This recipe is high in acid and may give varying results when making the jelly, that is why I recommend using both liquid and a bit of powdered pectin for the jelly recipe. I did have a bit of a problem with my first batches as I had foolishly added another acidic juice in a bid to play with the flavors, I had to fix several batches; so don't do that.

-The rest of this liquid can be frozen to use at a later date.

Leave any questions or comments down below, don't forget to subscribe and let me hear from yah if you give this recipe a go.

Take care, be well, love freely.