WORD IS that a wild cook is on the loose at Rudding Park. But when you meet Stephanie Moon, nothing could be further from the truth.

The hotel’s consultant chef has earned her nom de plume because Wild Cook is the name of her new blog.

Steph has taken on the persona because she is passionate about putting locally sourced and foraged food at the top of the menu, with dishes such as her sublime wild garlic soup, made from leaves which she picked not far from her kitchen door.

When I arrive, Steph dons her boots and we set off to eke out free ingredients from the woodland surrounding the hotel’s golf course. While most on the fairways are busy trying to avoid its fiendish bunkers, Steph’s attention is drawn to a clump of blue flowers near the seventh tee.

“Look, chef,” she says, either talking to herself or paying me an unwarranted compliment.

“Ground ivy, it’s a great alternative to mint sauce. And here is some wood sorrel, it’s got a sweet-sharp flavour and makes a wonderful garnish, especially with fish.”

Then she spots some burdock plants. Steph has been experimenting with these to keep fish moist in the oven.

“Burdock leaves are like nature’s tin-foil really and Wild Cook is all about going back to basics,” she says. “It’s about finding the finest ingredients which are readily available in our hedgerows, rivers and moorlands. I want to share everything I know about foraging.”

Hence the blog. Hunting out food from the countryside is the hallmark of wild cooking and with Steph’s help you can do it yourself.

Away from the manicured greens on the golf course, the woods here are alive with free food and much of it is a real surprise. Who would have thought that goose grass, the gardener’s scourge, would make such a tasty dish? Steph steams the leaves like vegetables or adds them to soups.

She even picks stinging nettles; only the heads mind you, and the shady part of a wood is the place to gather them because they will be more tender and succulent. Add boiling water to a pot of leaves, infuse for ten minutes and you have nettle tea.

Woodland is also the place to forage for wild garlic. It likes semi-shaded, moist conditions and can be identified by its long, lush green leaves and garlic-like smell. Wild garlic grows in late winter and throughout spring. Now, at the end of the season, it’s easier to spot because of the white, star-like flowers; in front of us, the banks of a meandering stream are festooned with them.

Steph doesn’t only use wild garlic leaves just to make soup. She has a delicious pesto recipe and they work well in salads. Unusually, she deep fries the flower heads in batter to use as a garnish for dishes such as roast Whitby halibut with wood sorrel risotto.

With summer berries about to burst forth, Steph also offers great tips on her blog for classic jams and preserves. Some are easy to spot, such as blackberries, rose hips and elder, which grow well along fences and hedges in rural areas. Most people can grow their own berries, no matter what size garden they have, so long as it gets full sun.

So what else should we look out for? Everyone knows dandelions are plentiful at this time of year. But are you aware of dandelion coffee? Just roast 25 roots at 200 degrees C – having washed and dried them first. Once they have turned into brown, dry sticks, grind in a blender, add a couple of tablespoons to boiling water and allow to steep for a few minutes.

Dandelion coffee is caffeine-free and has a pleasant chocolaty taste.

When you go on family days out to the dales and moors, look out for bilberries in summer on high moorland and heath; they make a wonderful pie filling. Later in the year, orange-red rowan berries make a colourful autumn splash. High in vitamin C, they can be made into a jelly which goes well with game meats.

On trips to the seaside there are plenty of edible plants, seaweeds and shellfish to be found. Crabs are now in season, but whatever the time of year don’t forget to take a rod and line.

“I’ve been cooking for 20 years now and you’re always looking for new things,” says Steph.

“I’ve been foraging for almost a year and it has revitalised me as a chef because it’s about getting into the wild and seeing what’s around you. That has given me a new interest in how to work these flavours into food. It’s a fresh thing to do, something really different.”

She is looking forward to autumn when the woods will yield succulent mushrooms such as penny buns and chanterelles. But you need to know what you are doing if you take up foraging, especially with fungi. Avoid any with white gills – don’t even thinks about touching them.

Steph still goes out armed with reference books and her advice is don’t pick wild plants unless you are absolutely sure.

Foraging is becoming a popular way to source delicious, free food and while the plants may be free, you need to check the land you’re rummaging in has a thoroughfare, or you might be trespassing.

And do your homework first. Foraging may be a great way to discover new tastes, but much that is out will do you no good at all. Which is why Steph’s Wild Cook blog should be such a boon.

• Stephanie Moon is the Deliciouslyyorkshire champion chef with a remit to promote the county’s culinary delights. In March, she won the bronze medal in the British Culinary Federation Chef of the Year competition. To follow her foraging exploits, visit thewildcooks.co.uk