Recipes

Indigenous communities associated with what is now Joshua Tree National Park make use of a range of plants that grow in the area. Oak acorns, chia seeds, honey mesquite beans, and many more are widely used in traditional recipes.

For information on how acorn mush is made, see the Hearst Museum's webpage.

Wewish – Acorn Bread

Cahuilla recipe

As described in Malki Museum’s Native Food Tasting Experiences booklet, Cahuilla elder Katherine Saubel explained her mother’s preparation method for making wewish from black oak (Quercus kellorgii) acorns:

“After cracking and removing the shells we rubbed the acorns between our hands to separate the skin from the nut. Any remaining skin would make the bread bitter.

The next step is to grind the acorns…. It is important to grind the acorns into a very fine meal like the consistency of purchased wheat flour.

Mrs. Saubel showed us how her mother had leached the acorns. She placed a cloth on a wooden and chicken wire frame measuring about 24”x24”. Onto this she spread the acorn meal evenly. She never pours the water for leaching directly onto the meal but over her hand while moving it around so all the meal is leached evenly and the water makes no holes in the acorn meal coating. It is adequately leached when it no longer tastes bitter.

To make the bread we placed 1 1/2 inches of water in the bottom of a pot over medium heat, added a cup of acorn meal, then alternating, adding water and meal, until a batter the consistency of polenta was achieved. When done the color changes and it also tastes ready. We poured the batter into glass baking pans and allowed it to set up. When cool it is ready to slice and serve. The consistency is like a hard pudding and is very tasty.”

From: Kotzen, Alice. Malki Museum's Native Food Tasting Experiences, 4^th ed. Malki Museum Press, 2003. Excerpt reproduced courtesy of Malki Museum.

Chia Pudding

1 cup milk
¼ cup chia seeds
¼ to ½ tsp vanilla extract
Orange zest or chopped dates (optional)

1. Mix all ingredients together in a small lidded jar.
2. Refrigerate several hours or overnight until thickened.
3. Garnish with fresh fruit.