Hi, I’m Eleanor. I host foraging walks and workshops on wild plants and their many uses, also on fermentation practices teaching how to preserve and process wild foods. I believe wild and fermented foods are the missing link in our diet for many chronic health conditions and the health benefits are within everyones reach. I’ve studied biology and environmental science with the Open University, but most of my knowledge is self taught having foraged for food and medicines for family and friends for 30 years and hosting workshops on and off for the past 15.
I’ve 25 years experience as a youth worker and playleader and as a home educator, I’ve worked with family groups. I’m keen to work with more community groups, local food projects, organic farms, schools, home ed groups.
I love to encourage people to invite the wild into their garden as well as experience wild places, I believe the plants that benefit us the most tend to follow us wherever we go and we should honour that relationship as well as venturing out to meet the more elusive species.
I live and work in Aberdeenshire but will happily facilitate walks and workshops in Moray too.
Workshops I Offer
Below are some descriptions of workshops I have previously run to give you an idea of what I do. I don’t have any upcoming public events but if you’d like to be notified as they become available you could follow me on Instagram. If you are a group or venue that are interested in hosting these or similar events please get in touch for a quote. I can travel within Aberdeenshire and Moray.
Autumnal Forage with Wild Tasters
Join me for a late September forage when the hedgerows will be offering nuts and berries. Imagine your larder stocked with fruit leathers, berry ketchups, wild hazelnuts, acorn flour, dandelion coffee and elderberry elixir. The flowering plants have had their time in the sun, hopefully we’ll find their skeletons still bearing seeds, nutrient dense wayside snacks, some with a taste profile that earn them the title of ‘Scotland’s wild spices’. As the plants die back for the winter energy returns to their roots, some of which find their way into comforting winter brews, my favourites being valerian hot chocolate and dandy chai.
Elderberry and hogweed seed leathersSpicing the Elderberry RobNettle, Spignel and Hogweed seeds
Mocktails and Fermented Beverages
Bring sparkle to sobriety. Inspired by herbal preparations, sample the flavour of wild seeds, berries and flowers captured in syrups, elixirs and tinctures. A few droppersful of these added to sparkling water makes a pretty fine mocktail but we won’t stop there. Learn about the bitter deficiency in our diet and why inviting the bitter flavour into your life is a good idea. We’ll get beyond angostura by trying a range of homemade cocktail bitters and you’ll be invited to pick n mix from a variety of herbs and spices to take home for your own bitters infusion. I’ll ferment some fizz for our mocktails with kombucha, Tepache and ginger beer and together we can experiment with a little sober mixology. (3 mocktails pp included in price)
Wild Fermentation
Join me for an introduction to the ancient art of fermentation. This two hour workshop will include demonstrations on how to culture a variety of wild fermented food and drinks. There will be demonstrations and tastings of vegetable lactoferments, kefir, sourdough bread and kombucha. Take home a little jar of vegetable ferment and a scoby, sourdough starter or kefir grains if you want to get more adventurous. Fermenting is an amazing way to play with flavours, to preserve and to enhance the nutritional quality of food, as well as promote healthy gut bacteria.
Wild garlic and Nettle sourdoughWild seeded sourdough
