A feller I knew years and years ago always said you had to have an eye for hunting mushrooms. He said some people can see them and others can't and there's not much you can do about it if you can't.
Little man Isaac has an eye for 'shrooms.
We went mushroom hunting Friday night and Isaac was bored to tears initially. Walking around. Looking for something that may or may not be there. Hungry. Tired. Then he found the mushrooms and the game was on! It was so funny; he was carrying around a 'mushroom stick' as he called it, pointing out mushrooms quicker than he or anyone else could pick them. "There's one. There's one. There's two. There's one." Within 15 minutes, we had a grocery bag full of those wonderful, seasonal delicacies, mainly yellow and gray sponges...a couple ounces shy of 5lbs to be exact!
Needless to say, Saturday night was an absolute feast-night in our house. And the best part, the vast majority of the food was extremely local. We enjoyed about 2 lbs of fried mushrooms that came out of the woods behind our house. Kale that over-wintered in our garden, simmered in homemade chicken broth. Beans and rice. For dessert, homegrown rhubarb crisp. And to wash it all down, fresh apple cider from my cousin's press with the last of 2010's root-cellared Gold Rush apples. Mara ate til she had a belly ache. Jeff and his dad ate til I thought they'd burst. And while the food was delicious, the fact that we were responsible for growing/finding it made it all the more enjoyable.
Can't wait to do some more 'shrooming!
5 comments:
That is awesome!!
Around here, morels grow wild. Good eatin' when they're fried in butter. I, however, do NOT have an eye for mushrooms, and typically am lucky to find two or three.
I love that most of your meal was local and produced by you! I was hoping to have a "harvest party" in late summer, inviting all my friends to enjoy the bounties of my summer labor. Unfortunately, it seems likely I'd only have a few little eggs and a couple of tomatoes to serve...
What an amazing night that must have been!
You're brave...not sure I'd have the courage to eat what I found. Not enough confidence that I'd know the good ones from the very bad ones!
As for Issac...don't forget that his little eyes are closer to the ground than yours are...! Success is good though - encourages further exploration.
It was a marvelous, local-food indulgence of a dinner!
Sue-there are a couple totally recognizable mushrooms that grow around here and those are the only ones we eat. And you're right....he probably has an eye for them because he's so close the ground!!!
Thanks for visiting my blog, Neighbor! I am now following you and the Ohio Preppers Network.
I want to learn how to mushroom hunt. Never been and don't know a thing about it.
Nice meeting you!
Carolyn
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