Foraging

Julie is back and she's eager to take us on a culinary tour of the ditches and culverts of Calgary.

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Nanking Cherry and Maple Whiskey BBQ Sauce

8 cups Nanking cherries, washed and stemmed

? cup sugar

? tsp ground ginger

1 tsp onion powder

2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp mustard powder (or 1 Tbsp grainy mustard)

1 tsp kosher salt

? tsp black pepper

1 cup brown sugar

1 ? cups maple whiskey (from Highwood Distillers in Alberta)

In a large saucepan combine cherries and sugar. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer until cherries have given up their juice. Remove from heat and push through a sieve to remove skins and pits. Return cherry juice to saucepan over medium heat, add all the dry ingredients, stir well and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer and add 1 cup maple whiskey. Continue to simmer until slightly thickened. Remove from heat and stir in the final 1/2 cup whiskey. Cool and refrigerate in a sealed container.

Browned Butter Blueberry Muffins

1/3 cup butter

1/2 cup milk

2 large eggs

1 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

3/4 cup sugar

1 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. salt

2 cups fresh or frozen (don't thaw them) blueberries

Topping:

3 Tbsp. butter, cut into pieces

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 cup brown sugar

Preheat the oven to 375F and line muffin pan with paper liners.

Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Keep cooking until it melts, foams, then starts turning a nutty brown. Remove from heat, pour into a bowl and set aside to cool. Whisk in the milk, eggs and vanilla.

In another bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Add the liquid and fold gently until almost combined; add the berries and stir just until blended.

Divide the batter among the muffin cups. To make the crumble topping, combine all of the ingredients in a bowl and mix with a fork or rub together with your fingers until crumbly. Sprinkle evenly over the unbaked muffins.

Bake for 20 minutes, or until golden and springy to the touch. Makes 10 muffins.

Nanking Cherry Jelly

1500 ml (6 cups) Nanking cherries
250 ml (1 cup) water
1 package powdered pectin
1200 ml (4.5 cups) sugar

Stem and wash Nanking cherries and place in saucepan with water. Bring water to a boil and simmer 15-20 minutes until fruit is soft. Mash fruit to press out juice and strain. Return juice (3.5 cups) to saucepan and stir in pectin crystals. Place over high heat and stir until boiling. Stir in sugar and bring to a vigorous boil for 1 minute stirring constantly. Pour into sterilized jars and seal according to the manufacturer's directions.