Evergreen needles are one of the most commonly used foraged foods in my kitchen. I love that they are available year round, and I often infuse them in oil to make salad dressing, ferment them for soda, dry them for tea or sugar cookies, or best of all, use them to make spruce tip ice cream.
Identifying Spruce
Spruce is an evergreen in the genus Picea. Spruce trees, like pine and fir, bear cones and have needles, rather than leaves. There are 35 species of spruce in the world, all of which are edible.
To distinguish spruce from pine or fir, examine its needles. Both the spruce and the fir have needles which attach to the branch singly. Pine, on the other hand, is always attached in groups of 2 – 5 needles.
The spruce needle is sharper than the fir, and is easy to roll between your fingers. The fir has a flat needle which won’t roll.
Learn more about plant identification here: The Forager’s Guide to Plant Identification.
What Do Spruce Tips Taste Like?
The young tips of the spruce are new shoots of needles that are quite tender, unlike mature needles. They have a delicate, lemony flavor with a woodsy after taste.
Spruce tips are high in vitamin C and make a great tea for warding off colds.
Pines and firs are also edible and can be quite tasty as well. Try this Douglas Fir Infused Eggnog from @Nitty Gritty Life.
Harvesting Spruce Tips
Harvest spruce tips in the spring when they first emerge from their papery covering and are still light green and tender. Simply pinch the new growth off the end of the branch, and remove any of the covering that might remain as well as any stem that you may have inadvertently harvested.
If you are harvesting from a young, small tree, be sure to limit the number of tips you take. On tall, mature trees pick all you can reach. The upper parts of the tree contain many more tips and it would be difficult to over harvest.
Choose a tree away from busy roads to protect yourself from the chemicals that have settled on the tree from car exhaust.
Spruce Tip Ice Cream
Spruce tip ice cream is a refreshing treat. The subtle flavor of the tips infuse nicely into cream – no need to heat the dairy. I love to use raw dairy and heating would destroy the enzymes that make the milk digestible.
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Ingredients
- 1/2 cup spruce tips
- 2 cups heavy cream preferably raw
- 1 cup whole milk preferably raw
- 1/2 cup organic cane sugar
- dash sea salt
- 2 tablespoons vodka optional - this prevents your ice cream from getting rock hard in the freezer
Instructions
- Lightly chop the spruce tips in a food processor or by hand.
- Mix together the chopped spruce tips, the heavy cream, and the whole milk and allow to infuse in the refrigerator for 8 - 12 hours.
- Strain the spruce tips from the cream mixture.
- Add the sugar, sea salt and vodka, if using, to the cream mixture and mix thoroughly until the sugar is dissolved. Work quickly so that the cream mixture remains cold.
- Pour into an ice cream maker, and churn according to manufacturer's instructions for 20 - 25 minutes.
Thank you for visiting Learning And Yearning. May "the LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the LORD turn his face toward you and give you peace." Num 6:24-26
Leah says
oh. my. gosh. i am sooooooooo trying this!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Susan Vinskofski says
Enjoy!
Amanda says
Good Morning
I school my grands and yesterday they were amazed at the new buds on the pines. They were slipping the caps off. We were comparing last years hard needles to this years soft new needles. How timely a post on making icecream from you. Today for science we will cut some and make it.
Thank you. God leads.
From Reading Pa
Amanda
Susan Vinskofski says
Fantastic!!!
Patti says
Excited to try tea. Bless. Thank you!
Susan Vinskofski says
You’re so welcome, Patti!
Jean M. says
How important is it to use spring tips for this recipe? Can older needles be used in other times of the year?
B.Scott says
I’ve had the pleasure of having forged Pine ice cream in a creamery in Lancaster area of Pennsylvania last year and it was absolutely wonderful. Of course it’s a seasonal thing and to make that trip now and they not have it would be a disappointment although there are other ice cream‘s are incredible.
Susan Vinskofski says
That’s amazing and wonderful that they make a delicious treat from foraged pine!!!
Kristin says
This was delicious! Thank you for this recipe. We do not have spruce trees here in my area, but I just happen to be in the smoky mountain area when the spruce trees had beautiful new pretty green tips. If I am lucky enough to be able to collect spruce tips again, I will be making this ice cream.