Liet and I once stood picking and eating salmonberries, trying to find words to describe their somewhat caramellike flavor, when two elderly men came down the dirt road behind us. They, too, had been berrypicking, and they proudly displayed the fruits of their labors. These included salmonberries in three colors with bright bits of green fern enhancing their fresh look. - Time Life Books, 'American Cooking, The Northwest'

My mother is a wonderful baker. From an early age she instilled in me a love and passion for fresh fruit tarts. More often than not, apples were the preferred medium. At 85, her caramelized apple tart (tarte tatin) rivals anything any Michelin starred chef could ever hope to conjure. She made dough unapologetically, with the same certainty an artist feels knowing the exact shape of a statue long before the marble was ever chiseled. Every unmeasured step, deliberately repeated methodically. She too had learned the secrets at her grandmother's apron strings. Carefully mixing small cubes of ice cold butter into the mound of flour and sugar. Pressing hard with the heels of her hands till the mound resembled a coarse corn meal. Adding just the perfect amount of chilled water to insure it would ball. Her hands repeated these same moves for so many decades she no longer had to think. Tart making is an art learned by practice. I am sharing the same experiences with my five year old son Beaumont. This morning we wrestled with the dew covered thorny bushes that protected a hidden cache of sweet salmonberries. Carefully we pulled them one by one, periodically stealing one into our mouths thinking the other wasn't watching. I envisioned my mother smiling; knowing what she had so devotedly learned would continue long past her final breath. She had done her job. Le feu sacre was safe for one more generation.

Salmonberries are indigenous to the Pacific Northwest and can be found ranging from Northern California all the way up the coast to Alaska. They are some of the most delicate berries I have ever picked. They crumbled under their own weight and quickly end up resembling perfect individual salmon eggs. Though that is not where there name originated. Native people were quite fond of them. Some tribes allowed individual families to own strands of salmonberries. After getting the first and second picking rights, other tribe members were allowed to pick what remained. All the berries were shared in harvest feasts. Like most plants, they shared dual usage of both enjoyment and medicine. An infusion of the roots was used to stimulate appetite and encourage weight gain.The leaves were used to treat anemia, shorten lengthy menstrual cycles and ease labor pains. Dried leaves calm upset stomach and cure diarrhea. Shoots were peeled and eaten raw with salmon - hence the name.

Some salmonberries and two blackberries from our bushes. Enjoy!