Mesquite trees in the Sonoran desert are in abundance. Pretty much everywhere you turn there is a mesquite tree. They have these long pods that grow and then fall to the ground after they have dried up. Most people don't think twice about just crunching right over them (they are really fun to crunch under foot). But these pods are edible. The native peoples of Arizona have used them for thousands of years. Using a mano matate you grind the whole pod into flour. It has a sweet smoky flavor and leaves a wonderful after taste on your taste buds. Mesquite flour is naturally gluten free as it's a bean and not a grain. The flour makes wonderful baked goods and flat breads. See my recipe for mesquite chocolate chili brownies!
So, on to the point of this post. My neighborhood has lots and lots of mesquite trees. The one you see in the top picture is right in our front yard. It is currently loaded with pods and I am filled with anticipation for the day that they dry up and start to fall off. As soon as the pods fall off the tree you need to harvest them and store them in a cool dry place so that insects won't eat them.
Every morning I look at them to see how much longer are to harvest time. This year I will collect as many as I possibly can and take them to the grinding festival in October. Desert Harvesters is the organization that comes to the farmers market with a large grinding stone and for a small fee they will grind up your pods for you. I would like to have a big 5 pound bag of mesquite flour. If you buy it in the store it's really expensive. But collecting your own pods and having someone else grind them is cheap.
I'll keep you posted when the time comes... For now check out these local food links.
Desert Harvesters
Native Seed Search
Eat Mesquite (got this book recently and I love it)
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