Foraged goodness.

   I made two delicious treats yesterday, bolth with foraged goodness in them. One was a cherry pie filling, and the other was a delicious pineapple smoothy. For some reason I forgot to take a picture of the smoothy, but the next time I make it I'll put a picture up.

To make the pineapple smoothy, cut off the skin and the pokey things. Core it and dice it. Put the diced bits in a blender with some foraged mint,  you can also add in some other greens such as comefrey, dandelion, mallow or barrage. You can also add in some alovera just not to much or it will make it taste funny. If it needs some sweetener then add in a bit of honey. Add in some water just to help it get started. You don't need much because the pineapple is plenty juicy. Blend and drink. If you want it a bit colder add some ice or frozen strawberry to your glass. This will make a meal for two people, but as a drink it will serve at least six.

It's cherry season right now, and that means that all those people who don't eat the fruit off of their trees let us go and pick all we want. If you notice a fruit tree on someone's property that isn't being harvested, then chances are if you ask they will let you pick to your hearts content. But, if the branches are hanging over the fence then in many towns the fruit is considered public property, just make sure your not breaking any laws. Or don't, just causally pick a few as you walk by, no one will ever notice. Well, except for maybe the old guy that always hangs out at the buss stop.

Step one, get a husband or a slave or something.  Step two, canoodle or order that husband or slave to go pick some fruit (in this case, cherries)
Feel free to pick fruit too, or don't, thats what we have them for! Lol
Step three, pit the cherries. If the cherry is still on the stem, hold the stem and pull the cherry off by pinching it away from the stem. Almost like rolling it away from the stem and off the seed. The seed will probably be attached to the stem and not to the fruit. It dosn't always work quite right,  but I'm sure you'll get it.
Step four, heat the cherries on medium heat, just until they start to let go of their juices.
Step five, add in some cornstarch or arrow root powder. The amount you use will depend on how much starch to add. About 1 tbsp for every cup. You may need to add more or less. Once the powder has turned from making the juice milky-ish to being the color of the cherries see if it needs to be a bit more thick or if you need to add a bit of water. To do this take a spoon and dip it in the stuff and let it cool. If you like the consistency then it's time to move to the next step.
Step six, sweeten to taste. If you have honey bees, use that honey, if not use whatever sweetener you like, and however much of it you want. I recommend honey,  sugar,  or like xylitol or stevia. Just not something thats going to alter the taste to much like maple syrup. 
Step seven, add in a touch of almond flavor.

You can use this in pies (duh), jam filles cookies, on ice cream, whatever sounds good. Y ou can can it, use it right away or keep it in the fridge for like a week.

Happy foraging!