Anyone have favorite ways of cooking with pine pollen?
Judging by the layer of pollen I accumulated all over my stuff while sitting under a tree for a few hours last weekend, it is that time of year.
I've always heard "use as a flour substitute" but what I have found is that pine pollen doesn't like water. Just doesn't mix well with it. I ended up using more or less a regular pancake recipe last year where I cut the flour pretty heavily with the pollen. Also I used honey instead of sugar. It seemed that the lack of gluten (maybe) contributed to them not really rising. All in all it was a fairly non-descript fried-dough sort of result. *no* hint of a turpentine taste. Not at all like what the inner bark tastes like.
I'd like to try something different this year.
-Dan
