I will admit that I didn’t participate in the fiddlehead harvest this year.  Lynn went out by her lonesome and came back with just enough for dinner which was my duty.  For years I was a little iffy about fiddleheads – the tightly curled, unopened frond of the ostrich fern – as I found them too astringent and slightly bitter for my palate.  Plus I kept remembering a warning about them carrying toxins some years ago (which turned out to be a false one.)

However, time and tides change as does my taste and I have become a devotee.  As much as we all love them, we only have them a couple of times in the spring as we don’t want to come up empty in the years ahead. You can only cut 3 of the 7 scrolls in the very early spring when the plant is near to the ground and completely unfurled.  More and you will have killed the plant.  And, much like ramps, throughout the Northeast, over-harvesting is taking its toll.

Once cut, all you have to do is rinse them well and carefully brush off any dried brown skin.  They will stay quite fresh in the fridge for a couple of days.  Although I have seen them frozen, I wouldn’t suggest using them.  You want the fresh spring taste and crisp texture of those that are straight from the woods.

I think that I like them more now that I have learned to cook them carefully.  Old recipes suggest boiling or steaming for 10 to 15 minutes, but I simply sauté them for about 7 minutes in clarified butter and the give a finish of a squeeze of fresh lemon and sprinkle of sea salt.