You are going to need gloves and wellies for this one.
It’s not glam, OK? Camping just isn’t. EVEN when we throw in a hot tub, hot water and all the little extras. At the end of the day, you are going to end up a bare-footed wild wo(men) with grass in your hair and mud on your feet.
It is what it is. And it’s good.
Hike the woods, swim in the sea, get sand everywhere imaginable and let go of stress and tension. Glamping gives you those extra luxuries, it hands you the keys to fully reset and relax - but only if you are willing to grab hold of the wild and embrace it.
If you are staying in April, May or June, then you’ve got to find three things:
Wild Garlic (April/May)
Nettles ( April/May)
Elderflower (June)
The first find: Wild foraged Garlic
I fermented wild garlic for the first time. Usually, I make a pesto, sling it into a salad or lightly steam it, to melt on buttered toast.
But this year, I fermented it.
I was given Sel Gris Marin (grey salt). Pfwwwarrr is the word I would use to describe the flavour of the salt, but also what it does to food!
So naturally, I used it to ferment my wild garlic and I can tell you- the sweet aroma that now rises off my jar of garlic is incredible and the taste <<mwah emoji>>
Again, I put it on toast. Who wouldn’t!
Here’s the most interesting part - the process is ridiculously easy. Like when I first made Sloe Gin.
My ethos when it comes to using any ingredients (especially found naturally)is ease.
Safe to say I will be making this again- and lots of it!
Here’s the link to the step-by-step recipe I used. I didn’t create my own or reinvent the wheel. I used this guy’s webpage and it was very informative.
And next, the infamous wild foraged Elderflower.
So this one is still wild, you will need your wellies. If you want to pick elderflower on the farm, let us know and we will make sure you are picking Sambus Nigra, the freshest and tastiest elderflower there is to be found.
Use it on the day you pick it. Bring a large old water bottle from home to take it back with you.
Be sure to bring the basic ingredients with you.
I’ll give you my recipe and method, because the truth is I HAVE reinvented the wheel on this one and I’ve not found an elderflower nicer.
My recipe was given to me by a friend of my mothers and I’ve tweaked it over the years since.
My secret is always to over-do the number of elderflower heads 🙂
5L water
5Kg sugar
Half campden tablet (optional)
70 elderflower heads
6 mixed lemons and limes - unwaxed.
25-75g citric acid (optional)
The closest recipe I’ve seen to mine is River Cottage, it’s a smaller batch, so probably easier to follow if you’re making it glamping.
Method:
Boil the water, Don’t over boil or you’ll lose volume and dissolve the sugar.
Take off the heat and let it cool a tad or you’ll burn the elderflower.
Throw in your chopped lemon, limes, tablet, and elderflower.
Let it steep for the rest of your stay- 2-3 days.
I do a taste test.
Drain the liquid cordial into a fresh pot, I use a cheesecloth and sieve.
This next step is optional. If you want to bottle for longevity and you are at home, oven-bake the bottles, re-boil the liquid cordial and funnel the cordial into the sterilsed bottles. I use a hand corker to finish them off.
Then serve 1 part cordial to 5 parts water, or taste preference!
You’ll need to bring:
Cheesecloth
Sugar
Citric acid (optional)
Lemons and limes
Bottles
Campden tablet (optional)
Or make it at home, if you know where to find an elderflower tree…
Last and NEVER least - Nettles
Nettles to me mean green pasta. I bet you didn’t see that one coming! It was lockdown that got me into nettles.
I clearly had some extra time on my hands.
The main attraction of these prickly fiends that usually cause tears…
It’s their super health properties. Like if you eat nettles, your skin glows youthfully and you start levitating.
No you don’t.
But they are really good for you.
TBH when I looked online to do something with the nettles, everything was all teas and soups, neither of which took my fancy in spring- not hot weather friendly.
And it just so happened that over lockdown I was making fresh pasta (yes, time - if it makes you feel better - I haven’t made it in about a year).
So I decided to boil, squeeze and blend nettles into my fresh pasta. And then make nettle stamps in the pasta using the leaves (so cute I know - it was a wave of rare genius).
It was a family hit. (Whipped up a wild garlic pesto too)
So, if teas and soups don’t cut it for you either- go big and make pasta!
I used a spinach recipe like this one and substituted the spinach for nettles.
But then I found Hank when researching this wild forages blog. He's done a proper nettle recipe!
Happy foraging and don’t forget to book your wild adventure at the Welsh Farm Glamping.
(Camping for people who love the idea of getting WILD, but have mum-bodies that could do with a comfy bed).
Cariad mawr,
Beth
P.S. Fancy chatting? You’ll find us in our Instagram DMs.