One thing I love most about our garden is being able to eat and cook straight from it! The joy of going outside to pick something fresh and use it in your meals is unbeatable.

I know that the produce is fresh, pesticide-free, and packs a punch of nutrients and flavor.

And even better than this, is making a spring dish from your garden, celebrating all that is beautiful and new!

Going out to forage for edible plants and decorating this focaccia was a blast!

It was a great activity to do with little Ava, she loved it!

Scroll down for the recipe as well as other edible plants and flowers you can add to your meals to make it beautiful!

Spring Focaccia Recipe

INGREDIENTS:

For the dough: 

1 Tsp active dry yeast

8oz warm water 

1 tsp sugar 

2 tbs extra virgin olive oil 

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour 

1 tsp salt 

1 tsp garlic powder 

For the toppings:

Forage for items you can eat right now such as Spring onions and Dandelions. 

You can add basically any edible plant to decorate with. 

Fresh Herbs ( rosemary, chives, parsley, basil, etc) 

5-6 Fresh garlic cloves 

Olive oil 

DIRECTIONS:

Place yeast, sugar, and water in a bowl and let sit for 5 minutes until yeast is activated. 

Once activated, add remaining dough ingredients to a mixer with a dough hook and knead until all is incorporated. 

Remove and knead by hand for 1 minute. 

Place ball of dough in bowl and cover. Let it rest for 2 hours. 

Remove and grease a 10x15 baking sheet

Shape dough into a rectangular shape. 

Cover and refrigerate for about 45 min 

Preheat oven to 450 F

Remove pan from fridge and use your fingers to create dimples across the surface. 

Coat with olive oil.

Decorate with your toppings in any desired manner.

I sliced the spring onions in half and spread the dandelions around. 

Sprinkle with salt.

Bake for about 20 min or until golden brown. Be careful not to bake it for too long or it will be too crunchy. 

While baking mince garlic and place in a little olive oil and salt in a small saucepan. 

Warm it up gently so the garlic cooks a little bit. 

When the bread comes out of the oven brush with garlic mixture. 

Let it cool and ENJOY! 

Makes approximately 12 servings.

OTHER EDIBLE WILD PLANTS

Don’t be afraid to add wild edible plants and flowers to your dishes and on this focaccia recipe. They can offer extraordinary flavor, nutrition, and visual “wow” to your meals. These wild plants are also edible:

• Garlic Mustard

• Lungwort

• Purple dead-nettle

• Wild garlic

• Common daisy

• Coltsfoot

• Red clover

• American elderberry

• Viola flowers

• Wisteria flowers

• Redbud flowers

• Wild brassica/ mustard flowers

• Wild roses

May you enjoy this focaccia in the spring days to come! And your food be more colorful than ever!