Septembers Seasonal Foods

September is one of the best seasons for foraging, here is a list of the most common foods you will find in the UK.  September is a great month for preserving, you really need to make the most of what you have now to see you through the winter!

Wild

Beech Nuts, Bittercress, Borage, Broad- leaved WH, Chick Weed, Crimson Glory Vine,  Fat Hen/ Lambs Q, Fuchsia, Garlic Mustard, Hazel Nuts, Hedge Mustard, Herb Bennet, Himalayan Balsam, Horse Radish, Lemon Balm, Marsh Samphire, Mint, Nettles, Orache, Oregano, Poppy Seeds,  Rampion, Red Clover, Rose Hips,  Shepard's Purse, Sorrel, Sowthistle, Sweet Cicely, Violets, Water Cress, Wild Rocket

Fruit

Blackberry, Damson, Darwin Barberries, Fig, Gooseberry, Pear, Plum, Raspberry, Redcurrant, Rowan Berries, Sea Buckthorn, Strawberry  

Vegetable

Aubergine, Beetroot, Broccoli, Butternut Squash, Cabbage, Carrot, Celeriac, Celery, Courgette, Cucumber, Fennel, Garlic, Leek, Lettuce, Mangetout, Marrow, Onion, Parsnip, Peas, Peppers, Potato, Radish, Runner beans, Shallot, Spinach, Swede, Tomato

 

Game

Duck, Fallow deer, Golden Plover, Goose, Grey Squirrel, Grouse, Hare, Mice, Muntjac deer, Partridge, Rabbit, Rat, Red deer, Roe deer, Sika deer, Snipe, Wood Pigeon

If you would like any recipes for any of the above, Have a glut of a specific item or would like to challenge me to cook something from the list please get in touch :)

Email- tzsfb@hotmail.co.uk
Twitter- @zombiefoodbible

Wast Not Want Not- BOIL THAT CARCASS!

We live in a throw-away society, most of us buy our meat from a super market which comes nicely cut up and made to look as pretty as possible with the fur/feather, organs and often bones removed. In a survival situation you won’t have that luxury!

I’m sure that the producers of these pre packed foods sell on the by-products to pet food companies, leather tanners and so on. I think this is a real waste. For those of you who simply throw away the carcass of their chicken after a Sunday roast or give the dog the bone from their joint of lamb, you’re robbing yourself of a free meal! I'm going to teach you how you can feed yourself tomorrow with the waste from today.

Every part of an animal can be used if you were so inclined, The fur for clothing, the feathers for tinder, decorations or even bedding, The bones and scraps of meat can be boiled down for stock, soup and stew, The fat can be collected in many ways and used for many things, The edible organs will make a tasty meal, blood can be added to soups, the intestines can be used in animal traps and snares even the bladders could be used to carry water or used as a casing for sausages if you were so inclined.

Imagine you have caught a couple of rabbits, a nice plump duck or if you’re really lucky found yourself a sheep you have lovingly killed and cleaned the animal putting the edible organs to one side, and saving the fur to make blankets or maybe saving the feathers for arrow quills or pillow padding, you have cooked the critter and enjoyed every mouthful! Are you really just going to throw away the bones, fats and scraps??? Or are you going to make a nice stock, soup or stew to feed yourself tomorrow?

So today we will start simple, something we can all at home after a roast dinner- Boil That Carcass!

Stock

Place all the bones, and waste from your animal in the biggest cooking pot you.
Cover the bones with atleast a litre or water or enough to cover them completely.
Bring to the boil and simmer for 90 minutes.
Remove any scum that rises to the top.
Using a colander, sift or slotted spoon remove and discard all the bones from the stock
Your stock is now ready to jar or freeze if possible, this can be added to your meals as you would add a shop bought stock cube.

Soup

Make stock as advised above however do not discard the bones and waste, pick through the bones and strip of any remaining meat which will be tender and easy to separate. Put this back into the mixture and add a selection of chopped vegetables, herbs, spices and seasoning and simmer for a further 45 minutes.

Stew

Follow the recipe as above for stock and soup but thicken the mixture by simmering down for a longer amount of time, If you add pasta, rice, potato, flour or gravy browning this will help thicken your stew.

Thanks for reading :) Tomorrow i will add photos and a recipe for boil that chicken carcass soup

Email- tzsfb@hotmail.co.uk
Twitter- @zombiefoodbible

Posh Hare Stew Recipe

I recieved an email asking for a Hare recipe so Tony this is for you :)
So in a world when zombies exist it may not be practical to make posh hare stew But there is no reason why you cant cook it at home or outside now, practice makes perfect afterall!

This is a beautifully rich hare stew that will warm and satisfy, and is so tasty those not fond of game will ask for seconds. Many people serve hare with ale but I think that hare can be rather metallic/bitter in taste and prefer a sweet sauce to really bring out the flavours. You can of course substitute the hare for other game you have caught such as rabbit or pheasant.

1 hare serves 2-4 people

Ingredients-

•      Flour- 1tbs     
•     Salt and pepper- to taste
•     Butter/fat/oil -1tbs
•     Stock (your choice)- 1pint
•     All spice-1-3 pinches depending on your taste
•     Red currant jelly- 1tbs
•     Sherry/ Port/Sweet Red Wine- 125ml
•     Bouquet Garni- 1
•     Hare- 1
•     Onion-1
•     Celery- 2 sticks
•     Carrots- 2

Recipe-

• Skin, gut and joint your hare

• Dice onion, celery and carrot

• Sprinkle your jointed hare with flour and fry off  in butterfor a few minutes on each side in a large cooking pot.

•  Remove hare joints and fry off diced onion, celery, and carrot in same pan untill softened, add water if it begins to stick

• Add the hare back into the pot with 1 pint of stock, a pinch of salt and pepper, 3 pinches of all spice (cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon are suitable substitute) and your bouquet garni (a selection of your favourite herbs will substitute) Simmer the mixture for 2 hours. Remove the portions of hare, pick the meat from the bones, place the meat back into the pan and place the bones to one side for a stock or soup tomorrow.

• Add a table spoon of red current jelly or any sweet jam/jelly you have made from berries and a glass of sweet sherry, port or red wine.Simmer for a futher 30 mins add flour if you would like a thicker sauce. 
• Serve this dish with mash potato and veg or camp fire bread
  
   
  
  
  
  
  
   If you would like any recipe ideas please do not hesitate to ask! if you would like me to publish photos and a how to guide on skinning, gutting and jointing hares and rabbits please let me know :)  
  
  
  
  
  
  
   Email- tzsfb@hotmail.co.uk
  Twitter- @zombiefoodbible

Fire Building

In a survival situation such a a zombie apocalypse once the gas and electric has been cut off, you have ran out of gas stoves or have no generators; an open fire may be your only means of cooking and heating. This can be a tiresome chore or wonderful fun depending on how prepared you are and your fire building knowledge. Preparation is key with fires. You never want to be in the position when you do not have a flint n striker, match or lighter.

Building a fire to cook on may not be as simple as you think, you need to take all things into consideration such as the weather, it may be sunny today but has it been raining for the last few weeks are the surrounding trees and ground wet.  Wet wood will smoke this could draw attention from zombies or perhaps even other survivors who may be interested in stealing your food or worse! How windy is it? A mild wind is great to start your fire but a strong wind will burn through you wood quicker than expected and can carry embers away. 

You will need three types of wood to build a sucessfull fire for cooking or heating. 

• Tinder- cotton wool, dry leaves, straw, feathers, paper 
• Kindling- Small sticks easy to light
• Fuel- larger sticks and logs to keep the fire going

Fire building is one of my most favourite things, I always wanted to help dad with his garden fires and help mum fill the log burner at night time, for the past 8 years I have built fires for a living, running firewalking events to raise fund for charity. I have had to build safe fires in all weather conditions with a variety of wood and a whole heap of other challenges thrown in for good measure so here are my fire building tips to get you started.

•     Always carry a flint and stricker, matches and lighter.
•     Use your flint where possible and save your matches and lighter.
•    Gather all your materials before you start to light your kindling. 
•    Never leave a fire unattended
•   Always make sure your fire is fully out 
•  Collect a variety of woods, kindling, sticks, branches and logs 
•  Once you have settled think ahead, begin a wood store and start drying your wood in advance 
• Use your imagination- cotton wool, old clothes, feathers you have plucked from a meal, labels from tinned foods, straw etc are perfect kindling for starting fires in poor weather 
• Never burn plastic or toxic materials on a fire you will be cooking on.
• Only build a fire as big as you need it, do not waste rescources.
• keep water, soil or sand near by so you cant put the fire out fast.  
• if you have damp/wet wood leave it next to your fire to dry out.

FIRE TYPES

Many people choose to build a star fire so i will add some photographs of those at a later date, Below are two of my most used fire set ups for outdoor cooking,

 The Cross Hatch- This is such a simple fire which you can creat with most off cuts of wood, sticks and larger branches.

Layering the wood  in a cross hatch allows plenty of air to flow through the fire and plenty of little pockets to shove paper or rags etc This method can be used to lift the fire off ground so is good for damp areas

Larger logs can be placed on once the fire has caught.
This fire can be built as high or low as you require and is easily moved around for ember distribution.

  The Tipee- This fire is perfect for sticks, branches and off cuts. This method is also great for letting air get to the fire. Once the fire is established larger logs can be added.

Starting with small sticks and building up in size layer the sticks in a tipee shape, filling the gaps with any kindling you have.

As you can see this fire has been built usuing feathers for tinder from the pheasant i was about to cook.

Straw has been added as extra tinder to the fire and the logs at the back in
place to dry out while our fire is burning.











I always prefer to lay tinder first, add kindling with larger sticks and then light from the centre, this way you can let the fire burn for a few minuets without getting a face full of smoke until you are ready to add your larger wood.












There are other fire methods that i will share with you once i have taken some better photographs but these re the two i use most often.


Email- tzsfb@hotmail.co.uk
Twitter- @zombiefoodbible

Foraging Fun with Furry Friends

Why forage alone when you can forage with a friend? Furry friends are even better!

As some of you reading may already know almost 6 weeks ago I adopted a four legged friend :) A very naughty Jack Russel X that my work friends n I found on the M1 Motorway, Since then Roger has been just about everywhere with me and has a minimum of 3 walks a day.

Some days I curse the day we brought him home but the other 99% of the time I LOVE his company and enjoy our walks. You may wonder what this has got to do with foraging? A dog can be one of the best foraging tools you will ever have!

• Roger tells me where another dog/fox has urinated by sniffing or marking the patch himself.
• You will always have a plastic bag to hand to collect any finds.
• Not one person has stopped and asked me what i'm doing as i'm eating breakfast straight from the tree.
• When removing a poop bag from your pocket people just assume your going to pick up dog mess, not the hazel nuts you just found.
•  When you decide to pull up some horseradish from a roadside where you shouldn't really be picking people once again assume you are cleaning up dog mess.
• When walking a dog daily you build up a really good foraging map of your area, noticing new trees or plants you didn't notice before and you watch them flower, bloom and ripen meaning you never miss certain fruits coming into season.
• You dont have to share your bounty :P
• Dogs are also great at finding road kill
• Lastly and most importantly when the zombies are amongst us you will have a dog to protect you and make you aware of any zombies presence

So if you don't have a dog borrow one or adopt one :)

Email- tzsfb@hotmail.co.uk
Twitter- @zombiefoodbible

Cat Caught Pigeon, Duck Fat Potatoes and Chilli and Cinnamon Spiced Blackberries

So as some of you will have read earlier my cousin very kindly donated some food my way yesterday which consisted of a pigeon caught by a cat, some scrumped potatoes and some foraged blackberries. I promised a few friends I will publish some before and after photo's and a mini recipe so here it is.

The wild ingredients-

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 Pigeon Cleaning- The photos shows the fastest and cleanest way of getting the breast meat from bird. i will show different methods in the future but for now its as simple as plucking the breast plate, slitting along the breast plate on both sides and then following the cut round to remove the breast. This way iswaistful but great for beginers or folk in a hurry

 

Breast removed not a drop of blood or guts

-The Recipe-

1. Add a dash of water, your blackberries and some sugar if you have it in a pan. I also added a dash of cinnamon and a tea spoon of chilli powder because i love spice, simmer the pan on a gentle heat for 20 mins for a really nice sauce that goes great with most meat.
2. Boil the potatoes for 20mins- If you have the time and means fry off your potatoes in duck fat or any fat of your choice with sea salt for a minimum of 10mins.
3. Fry pigeon breast for 4 mins on each side at a medium heat in a little duck fat or butter until the meat is cooked through.
4. Assemble on plate and enjoy

THE LOOTING CHALLENGE - Part 1

The looting challenge is going to be interactive and a very interesting part of the blog. The reason for this is as I can't actually go loot a shop in real life or go raid the left over food in someone's larder I invite you to challenge me!

The challenge is simple- Name 3 or more canned, tinned, dried, none perishable items that can be found in your average food store, corner shop, pantry or any other place you may raid for food in a zombie survival situation and I will endeavour to create a recipe with only these ingredients and things I can find locally in the wild such as nettles, nuts and berries.

Example- you could challenge me to make something from a tin of tuna, dried pasta and a jar of pesto but that would be too simple. the more obscure items the better and things you would not usually put together. This will make the challenge more realistic as you are telling me what I have 'found'

--Please note at this moment in time I do not have a penny to my name so I have published this looting challenge set by my friend from food in my own kitchen cupboards--

Part 1- The items- Jarred Jalepeno Peppers, Garlic Cloves and Cherry Peppers,  a Bottle of Hot Sauce, Some Rice Cakes and a Cheese Triangle (that does not require refrigeration)

 Part 2- Chop a portion of the Jarred ingredients

 Part 3- Over a low heat in a frying pan fry off the chopped items in a tiny amount of water. Then add the hot sauce to taste and a cheese triangle. Let the cheese triangle melt and mix into the other ingredients

Part 4- Spread over a rice cake and enjoy

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Summary-
This was a real surprising challenge, I was expecting it to be pretty rank but ended up making a second helping! If you are strapped for cash give it a go as a cheap snack or even an alternative to a sandwich.
Try the topping in a toasty or even on a jacket potato. maybe even as a topping for meat? .... More experimentation to come!

Introduction

Hey, Thank you for coming to take a look at my blog, I know i am about 8 years late joining in on the blog scene but here are my reasons why.

The long term goal is to write a book called the zombie survival food bible which would be a recipe book, and a how to guide for basic foraging, hunting, cleaning animals, preserving, fishing, fire building etc. As I started to write I realised the detail I wanted to put into the book and the extra skills I would have to learn really will take many years to complete. The more I write more ideas came to mind and now the content for the book that I want to write is really more like an encyclopaedia.  I also wanted everything thing I do to be photographed to prove that everything I write has been done by me first hand and I'm not just ripping off other peoples recipes etc

For those of you wondering why its the 'Zombie' survival guide and not just a plain old survival guide there a few reasons- Firstly who doesn't love zombies? Secondly, this adds an element of fun too the book and challenge pages such a looting etc. Third of all there are so many laws in place and rules for foraging, hunting etc that i wanted to keep the book as simple as possible. in a world full of zombies the law no longer exists as we know it.

So why blog now?? Yesterday was a bad day! worse than bad! Heartbreaking! I went to my chest freezer to get a duck out for dinner and the contents had somehow defrosted ... sank into a pile of blood, fruit, fur and nastiness and then refroze. I do not have a penny to my name as I had just returned from holiday and now I do not have my back up supply of food which I intended to live off for the next 5-6 weeks.

After a day of sulking, sobbing and self pity i decided its time to do something positive! Its time to pull out the big guns and source my food without a trip to the shops. Luckily I have a fantastic family and outstanding friends who are willing to help me on my adventure. Mum very kindly fed me last night with Eggs from her hens, Potatoes from a neighbour and Gammon from the shop. My cousin called round later last night after hearing about the freezer incident with a bag off scrumped potatoes, foraged blackberries and a wood pigeon her friends cat had brought home.

I will blog intensively over the next few weeks on my meals, i do have tins, herbs, spices etc in the kitchen to add to recipes. But also i will publish other sections that I have already written and intend to publish in the book in years to come.

If you have any questions, Idea's, feedback or input please get in touch!

One final word- I am dyslexic, my grammer is appalling, i use lots of smiley's, I incorrectly use -;"?()  and even when i proof read things i get it wrong and I write how I speak! Pleaseeee bare with me. As my very good friend Chan would say 'I was born to be real, not to be perfect'

Thanks again!
Summer