Ground Cherries--Physalis spp.

Ground cherries (Physalis spp.) are native in many parts of the United States, and often grow alongside roads. The plants have large, deep green leaves and tons of pale yellow flowers that develop into cherry-sized fruits. I started seeds from Baker Creek Seed Company in my greenhouse eight weeks ago, and hardened the plants by putting them in cedar planters.
Ground cherries produce up to 300 fruits per plant and bear nonstop until frost. Four to six plants are sufficient for the average-sized family. Here are the first fruits forming on the plants.

What do you do with ground cherries?  You bake a pie.

It takes an hour to peel the husks from a container of ground cherries, the perfect amount of time for your pie pastry to chill while you make a phone call to an old friend in another state. An 8-inch pie needs two pounds of fruit, mixed with 1/2 cup of brown sugar, a pinch of salt, 2 tablespoons of flour, and 1 tablespoon of cornstarch. No spices, no lemon juice, nothing to distract from the flavor of the fruit. Most ground cherries have no acidity to them, and the flavor is the perfect midpoint between a pina colada and a butterscotch candy, with a slight tomato undertone (if you did want to get creative, a tablespoon or two of dark rum might be in order). The only thing the pie needs is a small scoop of vanilla ice cream on the side.