New to foraging? Learn more about ethical and safe foraging (plus how to get started) here!

I wake up and lay in bed, staring up at the ceiling. I raise my hands in front of my face and am slightly startled to see their familiar flesh-toned  appearance. The dream I had was just so vivid! Many times I have had this same dream, or a variation of it. Usually it begins with me gathering fruit from overloaded (and underappreciated) trees. Then I go to wash the fruit in a basin of water and I watch as my hands shrink, my palms turn black, and shiny fur grows on the back of my hands. Suddenly, I become immensely aware of the sensation of water on my hands, of the texture of fuzzy peaches and glossy plums. I become entranced by the water and the colorful ripples that radiate outwards in waves of reflected color. I play and splash a little, delighted at the droplets that fly into the air. Then, at some point, I catch a glimpse of my reflection in the still-moving water. A little black nose. Whiskers. A black mask of fur around my eyes. It’s usually at that point that I wake up, a little unsure of whose body I’ll be inhabiting when I do. Those raccoon dreams are just so real, so filled with sensory details and incredible clarity! 

I love raccoons, with their endless curiosity, their fixation on touch, their cleverness and dexterity (which I realize is also the reason many people view them as pests), and their undeniable mischief. Of all the animals I can think of, I probably relate to raccoons the most. I, too, am filled with unquenchable curiosity. My thin, strong hands are my favorite part of my body and are sensitive enough to know when the clay I am pinching into a cup is the perfect thickness, or to feel my way through the forest on a moon-less night. And, like the raccoon, I too am a scavenger. 

I’m a mountain girl living in the city now, and I tend to view the world through green-colored lenses. (By that I mean through the eyes of an avid forager.) There is so much hidden bounty here, tucked away in back alleys and spilling over the sidewalks. Ornamental plums and crab apples create sticky messes swarming with wasps. Forgotten apple trees drop their fruits into the gutter. Those same trees that provided such beautiful and ephemeral blossoms in the sweet days of spring are now regarded as a nuisance, a mess to clean up. 

These fruits are not as accessible or appealing as a perfect peach from the store or market, it’s true. But they hold plenty of potential for delicious fruit butters or spreads come wintertime! Pickled crabapples are delicious with yogurt or served with a cheese platter. Savory plum sauce is the perfect condiment for Asian-style stir-frys. And, let’s not forget the smooth fruit spreads known as “butters” that are the perfect adornment for a mid-winter waffle. 

I call this concoction “scavenger spread” since part of the delight of making it is exploring neighborhood streets to find the trees with fruit to spare. You have to be wary of location; if the tree is on private property, permission is important. (Most people will be overjoyed to have you help clean up the mess!) To make it, I usually toss whatever I find in the crock pot with just enough water to keep things from burning or sticking as they break down into syrupy juices. (If you’ve gathered any berries, you can toss them in there too!) A couple of hours of cooking time and things will have softened up enough to put through a sieve or, even better, an applesauce strainer. Then, back into the crockpot the juicy mush goes to cook on low heat until it becomes a thicker, more concentrated spread full of flavor. At this point I taste it and season as I see fit - a little sugar, perhaps, maybe a dusting of nutmeg or cinnamon or even a spicebush berry or two. There’s no recipe for this, just these general guidelines to follow. The fun is in the creativity.

Every batch of scavenger spread will be different, depending on what you’ve hauled home. Each will need to be adjusted by taste - some requiring no sugar, and some needing a hefty helping hand to counteract bitterness or tartness. (Keep in mind that these butters should be eaten within a week or frozen until use, since they won’t always contain enough sugar to preserve them by canning.) 

In the cold mornings of winter, you’ll be grateful for your stockpile of concentrated summer flavor. But there’s no sense in waiting until then to try ALL of it, right? Give it a shot on some fluffy pancakes to celebrate your patience and hard work. Want to make them extra special? Time for more scavenging! This time, we’re going after cattail pollen!

Cattail Pollen Pancakes

Cattail pollen comes into season anywhere from mid-June to late July, depending on the weather patterns of the spring. When many hear the term “cattail pollen,” they assume that means the brown fluff that blows in the breeze throughout autumn, but that is actually the fertilized seeds of the cattail plant! Much earlier in the year, thin green cattails form and, above them, a spike of bright yellow pollen. The pollen blows in the breeze and drops down onto the green female cattail, which is how it is fertilized and can grow into the “danger hotdogs” one of my friends has so aptly-named them. (Seriously, you do not want to take a bite out of a mature cattail. Trust me.) 

Harvesting the pollen is a bit of an adventure, but I’ve narrowed it down to the process that works best for me! Keep in mind that every step of this process is messy and that you WILL be covered in yellow head to toe by the end of it. If you have pollen allergies, this may not be the activity for you… though cattail pollen is larger and heavier than most other pollens and isn’t a common allergen. 

Anyways, let me walk you through my process: I find a clean water source like a remote lake or stream (no road-side ditches, please!), then I either don waders or grab a paddleboard, depending on the depth of water they are growing in and what kind of access would be most helpful. (A note: I’ve harvested cattail pollen from the water wearing just a swimsuit before, but I had an unfortunate encounter with a proliferation of leeches that has made me appreciate my protective waders in a very real way.) I bring a large plastic jar with a big opening and watertight lid along with me, and some clippers too. To harvest the pollen, I gently bend the stalk down towards me until I can stick the pollen spire into the jar. Then I cut the whole spire right off so that it falls into the jar. I continue foraging, leaving plenty of pollen spires behind to keep the cattail ecosystem healthy and sustainable. I seal the jar when I’m walking or paddling so that if I accidentally drop it, it will just float next to me. Walking through a marshy lake in waders is a rather clumsy process, and it would be such a shame to lose any of those golden spires!

To process the pollen from the fluff and inevitable bugs that wind up with it, I dump the contents of my container into a paper shopping bag and let it sit out overnight (which will allow more of the pollen to drop and most of the critters to fly to freedom.) Then, I fold the top of the bag over and give it a really good shake. I pull out the spires one by one, giving each a good shake in the bag as I do. Even though they look like they’ve released all of their pollen, I put them in another paper shopping bag to repeat the process the next day. You’d be surprised at how much they still hold! Once I’ve shaked off all the spires and removed any rogue leaves, I sift the mixture through a fine strainer to separate the fine, bright yellow pollen from the tan bits and any remaining bugs. Ta-da! A beautiful bowl of bright yellow pollen (and one very messy me!) 

Cattail pollen is fairly high in moisture, so it should be used within a day or two or stored in the freezer for up to several years. I like storing it away for midwinter bakes when I’m missing the sweetcorn-like floral flavor of summertime. Pancakes are probably the most common use of this wild ingredient, but I have found it to be delicious in cakes, breads, and other baked goods too. Not only does it impart a cheery yellow color and pleasant sweet flavor, cattail pollen is also a great source of protein and nutrients. Give these pancakes a try first so that you can get a sense of the flavor of this marsh gold. This plant-based recipe tastes amazing with a little vegan butter (there’s a recipe for that below) and a drizzle of Scavenger Spread - in this case, I made huckleberry syrup! 

Fluffy Cattail Pollen Pancakes 

I love the texture of these delightful plant-based pancakes! I used this recipe from Thrive Magazine as a base, then adapted it to work with a good addition of cattail pollen. 

Ingredients: 

1 Tbs. apple cider vinegar

1 c. almond milk

1 ½  c. all-purpose flour (or a gluten-free substitution) 

½ c. cattail pollen

2 tsp baking powder

Pinch of salt

¼ c. sugar 

2 Tbs. vegetable oil 

Directions: 

1. Make vegan buttermilk by mixing the almond milk with the vinegar and set aside. 

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cattail pollen, baking powder, salt, and sugar. 

3. Add the almond milk mixture and the oil to the dry mixture and stir well to combine, then let it sit for ten minutes while you heat a non-stick or cast iron skillet over low-medium heat. 

4. Use a ¼ c. measuring cup to scoop out the batter and place it in the pan. If you want perfectly round and extra fluffy pancakes, use a mini non-stick pan. 

5. Cook until the bottom is lightly browned and the bubbles on top stay open, then flip and cook until the other side is lightly browned too. Serve warm with vegan butter and scavenger spread. 

Vegan Butter: 

Sure, you can buy pretty good butter substitutes at most grocery stores, but they just don’t stack up to the rich flavor of this homemade concoction. I’ve adapted this recipe from the book The Homemade Vegan Pantry, which I highly recommend to anyone wanting to learn how to make delicious vegan staples! For this recipe, you’ll need one special ingredient: liquid lecithin derived from sunflowers, which is an emulsifying agent that helps all of the ingredients blend together smoothly. 

Ingredients: 

1 ½ c. refined coconut oil or vegetable shortening, melted

½ c. nondairy milk of choice 

¼ c. canola oil 

½ tsp. Sea salt

Small pinch of sugar

Small pinch of turmeric (optional - for a light yellow color.) 

2 tsp. Liquid sunflower lecithin 

Directions: 

1. Put everything in a blender and blend until everything is fully incorporated and smooth. Pour into a silicone container and stick in the fridge to harden. Use within a month or freeze for later. 

Huckleberry Syrup for the Forest Scavengers: 

This is one of my favorite pancake toppings EVER. It takes some patience to brave the mosquitos to pick the huckleberries, but the results are worth it. 

Ingredients: 

1 qt huckles

2 Tbs. water

2 ⅓ c. sugar

1 tsp cornstarch mixed with 1 Tbs. water. 

Directions: 

1. Combine all of the ingredients in a medium saucepan over medium heat and cook until the berries have broken down and the liquid has thickened slightly. 

Love what you’ve read here? Don’t forget to Subscribe to get frequent updates of new posts!

Huge thanks to my Patrons that make sharing all of these lovely posts with you possible (without all of the pop-ups and ads that make browsing other blogs so annoying). If you’re feeling generous, you too can support the wonder with a monthly contribution of your choice. Even $1 helps a lot! Your donation will help to fund this blog as well as my surprise free events and gifts for strangers. Learn more about this program at the link below: