Taste the holidays: a concise orientation before we get practical.
Taste the holidays: Quick notes
The scent of fir trees is a holiday staple. From seasonal greenery to candles, the aroma heralds “the most wonderful time of the year.”
If you’re looking for a way to immerse yourself even further into the holiday cheer, try introducing fir to your taste buds. From classy cocktails to rustic potatoes, fir adds excellent seasonal flavor. And if you’ve never foraged for fir, don’t worry, we have some tips!
The following recipes are from Forage, Harvest, Feast by Marie Viljoen. It has been adapted for the web.
A Profile on Fir
Other Common Names: Balsam fir, Fraser fir, white fir, Douglas fir, and more
Botanical Names: Abies balsamea, A. fraseri, A, concolor, Pseudotsuga menziesii
Status: Trees native to North America
Where: Eastern, northern, and western America SEASON: Winter through spring, mostly
Use: Aromatic
Parts Used: Needles, cones
Grow? Yes
Tastes Like: Christmas
Fir needles are a relatively recent addition to my wild foods pantry. Since I live in the big city, my first fir forage was truly urban, and quite accidental: an organically grown Christmas tree, sold on a local sidewalk by Windswept Farm, a grower from Vermont.
I did not grow up with northern Christmas trees. My childhood Christmases were spent under blazing summer skies to the sound of swimming pool laughter. Our tree was a statuesque dried agave flower (called garingboom in Afrikaans), painted white. Quite effective, but perfectly dead. Thousands of miles and a hemisphere away, the intensely evocative fragrance of the firs sold on holiday sidewalks in winter Brooklyn is still intoxicating to me. I love the time of year when the tree sellers migrate down from Vermont and Québec and set up their perfumed walk-through shops with twinkly lights. One year, when I was taking down our own tree in January, I was surprised by how strongly scented the needles still were, despite being crisp. I carried a few branches into the kitchen and began plucking. Then I added vodka. That is how a new holiday winter tradition began.
A short mention of Taste the holidays helps readers follow the flow.
Small note • This tip on “A Taste of the Holidays” is so useful — thanks for sharing. Love this!