Can you eat spruce? That's what the coniferous tree offers in culinary terms!

AT A GLANCE

Can you eat spruce needles and how to use them?

As a "Featured Snippet": Young spruce needles, especially the light green shoot tips, are edible and can be used in many ways. They contain vitamin C, essential oils and tannins. Popular choices include pine tea, syrup, pesto, or to flavor salads and flavor oil and honey.

Which spruce needles can I eat?

Collect in time from May to April the fresh spruce shoots from the branches of the tree. You can recognize them by their light green color. In some regions, the shoots are also known as "Maiwipfel". This refers to the time of harvest. The branches of the tree can be used throughout the year to make tea. Above all, the fresh shoots of the spruce offer a fine aroma and can be processed in many ways.

How healthy is spruce needles?

spruce needles contain vitamin C, essential oils as well as certain tannins and are therefore very healthy. For good reason, spruce needle tea is also popular as a remedyl used. It has an expectorant effect. It is also said to have a calming effect.

It's so easy to pour spruce needle tea:

Place the spruce branches in a cup with the tip down
Pour boiling water
Leave for five minutes

How do you make syrup from spruce tips?

Pick young spruce tips and cook you this with water and sugar up for several hours. To do this, proceed as follows:

Collect and wash a kilogram of spruce tips.
Put the spruce tips in a saucepan.
Fill with water until everything is covered and bring to the boil.
Cover and cook for an hour until the needles turn brown.
Leave to cool and cover with a towel for 24 hours.
Drain the water through the cloth and add one kilo of sugar per liter.

How do I make a spruce needle pesto?

In combination with Olive Oil, Parmesan, Basil and pine nuts the May tops also make a wonderful basis for a tasty pesto. The aroma can already be smell of the plant guess. The preparation of this tasty recipe is not difficult either:

Cut the spruce tips and the basil leaves into small pieces with a knife.
Crush the pine nuts with a mortar.
Gather all three ingredients in a bowl.
Add oil, salt and pepper and mix well.
Finally add grated parmesan.

What else can I use young spruce needles for?

You can also use the shoot tips of the spruce to season salads, to refine olive oil and to flavor honey or to make herbal quark. In all cases, this ingredient promises a distinctively sour forest aroma. The spruce therefore offers a variety of uses.