Serves 4
2 cups fresh fiddleheads, cleaned and trimmed
4 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
1 pound fresh fettuccine noodles
1/2 cup chopped red onion
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup chopped rhubarb
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon maple syrup
2 tablespoons fresh thyme leaves
Cook the fiddleheads in boiling salted water for 2 minutes. Remove to a colander with a slotted spoon; keep the water boiling.
Stir in the fettuccine. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 6 minutes or until just tender. Drain.
Meanwhile, in a large wok or skillet, sauté the onion in the oil over medium heat for 5 minutes or until soft. Stir in the rhubarb; sauté, stirring, for 5 minutes longer. Add the soy sauce, sesame oil, and maple syrup, then stir in the fiddleheads and thyme. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute longer. Toss with the drained fettuccine and serve.
Pat Crocker of Hanover, Ontario, Canada, leads walks in which participants learn to identify and gather wild herbs, then prepare them for a gourmet lunch. Her latest cookbook, The Healing Herbs Cookbook (Robert Rose, 1999), features culinary and medicinal herbs in timely, tasty dishes.
Click here for the original article, The Queen of Spring: Fiddlehead.
