Great post!I recall seeing these berries grow in Marin, and never knew they were edible.
Living close to the land has always appealed to me and we have acres of manzanita bushes. Mix it with an equal volume of sugar to make manzanita syrup.
It is believed that the Indians may have used Manzanita leaves as toothbrushes. So I first decided to boil them for 20 minutes, then smash them with a potato masher.
Being of European descent, I decided on picking my manzanita berries green, but with a little rosy blush on them.I got four cups from one bush, and I did not even pick it clean.
When ripe they taste like apple and are sweet.hmmm…if one happy hippo says the flowers are sweet and honeysuckle like, what about a flower syrup like the elderflower syrup? Listing information for all of the species is beyond the scope of this article but much information can be found in Sunset's In nature, manzanitas are usually found in rocky or sandy areas and in the garden, they need excellent drainage. If I’m ever in a position to harvest manzanita, I’ll give this a try.Really fun post! ... A female or possibly juvenile summer tanager appeared ...
The unripe berries are loaded with tannin, which sucks all the moisture from your mouth and replaces it with a coating of felt — or at least it feels that way. Sounds good though. the season is upon us!In the spring time the flowers can be eaten right off the bush by the hand full & taste like honeysuckle.
Thanks for another great post–can’t wait to try it (we’re planning a Sierras camping trip in September and I know just where to find the manzanitas where we’ll be…).You are so good with words and you tell a great story. I was familiar with manzanita from my visits out West, but I didn’t know the berries were (semi) edible.
It has a decent flavor profile, but no sugar to speak of. An edible wild plant we have here (and I believe you’ve got them in CA too) is the camas lily, I meant to harvest some this spring and roast them like the native Americans were supposed to have done.
The species that do not form burls do not survive fire as well, and they must grow back from seed. The disconnect of the knowledge of this berry is not hidden, it’s ignored by history.I have a TON of manzanita on my property and had no idea I could make anything edible out of the berries! Plants should be set out in the fall. Thank you. I have had no mold problems, and the cider tasted just as good as when fresh-picked. You still in the area?It’s funny to read a commenter refer to these as “ornamentals.” But then again, I guess our Sierra Nevada and foothills are quite the envy of many a parking lot and front yard.I will definitely try this. Then, for each cup of manzanita, I pour 4 cups of cold water through the juicer too, to extract more flavor.
I have found that when you wait till fall and pick the berries when they are dry and powdery all the sweetness is concentrated and all the bitter, tart tannin is totally gone.
Sadly found it after it had expended all it's Energy. Very green, but large fruit (cherry sized). Keep them covered to retain moisture and do not let the soil dry out.
After 50 years or so can reach 15 ft.
Although the plant is no relation to apples (Malus x domestica), the tiny ripening fruits do look like apples and the fruit and seeds were used as food by Native Americans. Look at the top picture: They really do look like little apples.Ever since I moved to California I’d read that the berries were quasi-edible, that someone — Indians or Spaniards — did something with them at some point.
I wish I knew that back when I worked in a Cali forestry lab and spent my free time in Tahoe. We had one growing in our front yard in San Jose. Manzanita is all over the place out there, and the berries store really well in the fridge, up to two months. Undrinkable. I love it when you describe the whole process of how you figured out a new thing!I just made sumac lemonade this weekend — tasty stuff.
Woodland species should be given light shade. I’m going to do this come spring. Manzanita, a California Table & Bar Book a Table Latin-Asian cooking with a California influence Manzanita is a relaxing and welcoming Table and Bar concept that draws inspiration from local agriculture and the cultures of the San Francisco Bay Area through bold flavors and local ingredients. Wait 20 minutes. Manzanita adds a touch of the wild beauty of the Far West to the native plant garden or xeriscape border. I let the solids settle for a day.
?My apple cider crapped out. I’d say yes.