OT - Maple Spinners

Papa · Post by **Papa** » Sun Mar 23, 2008 4:35 pm

Anybody here eat these? I love to sautÃ© them with some olive oil and minced garlic um mm

They're not ready to pick here yet, but he buds have started to open. Next week or two and I'll have a mess to cook up!!

'Course the next thing to pick will be Poke for some really good eaten....

Papa

Griff · Post by **Griff** » Sun Mar 23, 2008 5:36 pm

I'll plead ignorance... what are they? Some kinda 'shroom?

Papa · Post by **Papa** » Sun Mar 23, 2008 5:47 pm

Naw, have you ever seen the little helicopters, some people call them that, that fall after spring and spiral down to the ground? They kinda look like a single wing with a pea or nut at the end of it....well they're good to eat when they first bloom before they dry out and fall.

That's a maple spinner http://www.grc.nasa.gov/WWW/K-12/TRC/Ae ... _Seed.html

TedH · Post by **TedH** » Sun Mar 23, 2008 5:52 pm

As kids we called them helicopters too. Had no idea they were good to eat.

Blaine · Post by **Blaine** » Sun Mar 23, 2008 5:57 pm

Do you peel out the bean, or do the whole helicopter?

Papa · Post by **Papa** » Sun Mar 23, 2008 6:01 pm

You eat the whole thing, but it has to be within the first couple weeks of sprouting or it starts to get tough. There's a very narrow window for picking them here in TN, only 2 wks at the most.

Papa

deerwhacker444 · Post by **deerwhacker444** » Mon Mar 24, 2008 1:59 pm

What size do you pick them? I've got them in the backyard, they're probably in the 1/2" range right now. Do you eat them like greens or a salad?

Papa · Post by **Papa** » Mon Mar 24, 2008 5:34 pm

You can pick them now, then yonger the better. You can eat them like they are in a salad, or saute them with some mushrooms and garlic or what ever. I like them a little aldonte? or slightly crisp so I don't cook them long

Pick a couple and pop them in your mouth and see what you think...

btw...I was born in Sequayah county at Sallisaw and raised in OKC, and Mustang.

adirondakjack · Post by **adirondakjack** » Mon Mar 24, 2008 10:24 pm

Well I'll be. if there's even a little nutrition in em, we could live for months off the durn things here. I'm literally surrounded by maples.

Post by **Hobie** » Tue Mar 25, 2008 7:17 am

Never heard of anyone eating them. That's new to me!

rjohns94 · Post by **rjohns94** » Tue Mar 25, 2008 10:05 am

I have learned something new. I have a tree in the yard, will have to give this a try.

Sixgun · Post by **Sixgun** » Tue Mar 25, 2008 10:19 am

You can eat those things?

We used to shoot 'em .

2571 · Post by **2571** » Tue Mar 25, 2008 12:09 pm

Live in Detroit. Maples everywhere.

Didn't know you could eat 'em. Thought they were probably poison.

Funny how people react to ecnonomic recession. LOL

GANJIRO · Post by **GANJIRO** » Tue Mar 25, 2008 12:24 pm

Papa wrote:
'Course the next thing to pick will be Poke for some really good eaten....

Papa

What's a "Poke"? Here in the islands "Poke" (pronounced poh-keh) is a spiced raw fish dish but I'm pretty sure that's not what you're talkin' about.

Post by **AmBraCol** » Tue Mar 25, 2008 2:08 pm

GANJIRO wrote:
Papa wrote:
'Course the next thing to pick will be Poke for some really good eaten....

Papa
What's a "Poke"? Here in the islands "Poke" (pronounced poh-keh) is a spiced raw fish dish but I'm pretty sure that's not what you're talkin' about.

Pronunciation:
\ˈpōk\
Function:
noun
Etymology:
Middle English, from Anglo-French â€” more at pocket
Date:
13th century

1chiefly Southern & Midland : bag, sack2 a: wallet b: purse

Sounds delicious, eh?

Well, then there's the "sharp jab", but what he's referring to is the following:

Etymology: perhaps modification of Virginia Algonquian pocone, poughkone puccoon
Date: 1708

: pokeweed

Poke is an edible plant that is harvested in parts of the country in springtime. I BELIEVE it can be cooked like spinach or eaten raw in a salad - but confess that all I know about it is what I've read over the years.

Post by **AmBraCol** » Tue Mar 25, 2008 2:14 pm

GANJIRO wrote:What's a "Poke"? Here in the islands "Poke" (pronounced poh-keh) is a spiced raw fish dish but I'm pretty sure that's not what you're talkin' about.

Here's some links to info on it. I've seen it in the woods before, just didn't know what it was. Raised on the wrong continent for that info...

http://www.motherlindas.com/alice_browns_poke_salad.htm

http://njaes.rutgers.edu/harmfulplants/ ... p?pokeweed

http://www.dkimages.com/discover/Home/P ... ana-2.html

GANJIRO · Post by **GANJIRO** » Tue Mar 25, 2008 2:55 pm

When I lived on Maui we had a variety of wild vegetables available right outside my front door most growing like weeds and needing constant control. My favorite was a wild squash we call "PIPINOLA" but I believe in Louisiana they are called Mirletons, and eslewhere Chayote. Not only are the fruits edible but also the young shoots, leaves, and even the roots. Another common "weed" was what we called New Zealand Spinach. It grew wild on the side of our lane and tasted just like real spinach but had to be fully cooked due to high oxalic acid content. Another treat was POHOLE (po-ho-leh) or fiddlehead fern shoots, I was fortunate enough to have some growing wild on my property while most had to trek to the rain forest to harvest. I don't even count the dozen Avocado trees, Guava, Loquat, mulberry, apple, peach, and thornberries growing in my yard. All I have now are Coconuts, and there's only so much you can do with Coconuts.

I miss Maui.

Rusty · Post by **Rusty** » Tue Mar 25, 2008 5:39 pm

A lot of survival experts say that in bad times foraging for plant life is much more efficient than hunting for meat. If anybody has one of Euell Gibons' books, he made a living writing about such things. I have his book on foraging sea life.

Not to hijack the thread, but has anyone ever eaten deep fried peanuts?

I had some at my wife's reunion a few years ago. They deep fry it in the shell and you eat the shell and all.

Tycer · Post by **Tycer** » Fri May 02, 2008 9:33 pm

They were good.

I'll try them again tomorrow. Need to pluck all the stems and cook over lower heat.

rjohns94 · Post by **rjohns94** » Fri May 02, 2008 10:06 pm

I have enjoyed them over the last two weeks. Past prime now.

Jaguarundi · Post by **Jaguarundi** » Sat May 03, 2008 2:04 am

Learn something new today

!Have to try some next season.

Mokwaw · Post by **Mokwaw** » Mon May 05, 2008 8:52 am

Did not know they were edible. When we were kids we used to pull the bean off and put the leaf part on our tongue...then blow over the "reed", made a nice loud buzzing whistle sound.

Blackhawk · Post by **Blackhawk** » Mon May 05, 2008 9:27 am

I didn't know you could eat'em either. Have to give'em a try next season.

Johnny

alnitak · Post by **alnitak** » Mon May 05, 2008 12:46 pm

Heard they were edible, but never tried them. Now that I have a first-hand account, will put them on the Spring treat list.

[Just went out to the front yard; they're still nice and green and soft. Just rinsed off a bunch and ate them. Not bad! Sweet. Taste a little like green apples. Will have to fix up a bunch tonight for the kids.]

alnitak · Post by **alnitak** » Mon May 05, 2008 1:24 pm

OK, question on these. As an experiment, I went to the backyard where a bunch of these have already fallen (the tree in front seems to develop later than those in the back). Picked up one of the dried ones and popped the seed out of the pod. It was green and soft, so I tried it. Not too bad; a little more bitter, but still edible. Any reason these couldn't be sauteed and eaten? Is it just the effort to get them out of the "pod" that leads people to eat the undeveloped seeds?

OT - Maple Spinners

OT - Maple Spinners

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Re: OT - Maple Spinners

Re: OT - Maple Spinners