Research/Inspiration

Tackling this brief, it really is crucial to gain a solid foundation of research regarding anything and everything about foraging. This isn't a brief that can be successfully challenged without being armed with a solid foundation of knowledge and research on the subject area.

My first port of call regarding research was simple but a necessary stage. The brief revolves around foraging in the wild, a topic I wasn't really aware of, so I found it essential as alluded to, to develop a foundation of knowledge and research regarding foraging.

So firstly, starting at the basics I wanted to look and find out what foraging actually is.

A website I found really insightful was 'Go Self Sufficient' which I found an amazing introduction to foraging. The website discusses what foraging is all about, what and where to forage.

http://www.goselfsufficient.co.uk/all-about-foraging.html

Similar to 'Go Self Sufficient', Fergus Drennan of 'Wild Man Wild Food' offers a really simple snapshot and introduction into the world of foraging. On his website, Drennan covers the basics of foraging and even discloses some interesting recipes.

http://www.wildmanwildfood.co.uk/Dyeing%20with%20wild%20plants.html

After looking at foraging and what it's all about, It was necessary for me to then to look more in depth at foods available to forage in the UK.

I found a hugely helpful PDF from the Wild Food School, that goes in to great depth into the basics of foraging but more interestingly looks at foods available to forage here in the UK, as well as even disclosing some beverage recipes using some of the plants looked at in the guide.

http://www.countrylovers.co.uk/wfs/wfsURBFORAGER.pdf

Again backing this up I looked at other articles regarding more plants and foods that can be found foraging and where. Here is an interesting article by Kara Moses, in which she looks at the top 10 foods to forage.

http://www.theecologist.org/green_green_living/food_and_drink/815671/top_10_foods_to_forage.html

Little video as well just showing the great ingredients and finds, foraging can bring.

The next step then after looking at foods and plants that can be found foraging, the natural step was to then look at recipes using some of these. Personally I gathered a collection of recipies that I found appetising as some to me just didn't look appetising at all.

From my research, taking note of some of the most popular goods to forage, I looked at recipes that use some of these particular ingredients found foraging.

Fergus Drennan has a lot of really nice recipes on the website I looked at early on in my research and I also looked at John Wright of the Guardian who looks at some really nice, simple recipes using some of the most common plants and foods found foraging in the UK. The bramble moose for example I just think looks a really appetising desert and made using common berries found foraging. Wright's recipes also include a wild garlic pesto and chestnut macaroons.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandstyle/2010/jul/29/foraging-recipes

I also thought it would be useful to gather a range of children's book covers, just to gather and spark some inspiration.