Blewits

Fellow workers at the winery found several nice mushrooms and brought them for me to see. I was most impressed by the Blewits, Lepista nuda (=Clitocybe nuda). Their haul also included some beautiful and large Amanita muscaria var. formosa, for which they expressed an unusually strong and suspicious interest.

Anyway, they were happy to give me the Blewits, and I was very happy to accept. Not having a comfortable amount of experience with Blewits, I did the mandatory spore print to distinguish from possibly poisonous Cortinarius. A light pink spore print was confirmation enough for me, and into the frying pan they went. I will use the opportunity to forage for more this weekend. The carpet of falling leaves is growing thick so they may be difficult to find.

Agaricus campestris

One of the all time most prized and collected of wild mushrooms, the Meadow Mushroom, Agaricus campestris, is usually found in open grassy fields. It has a low, squat stature and chocolate-brown spores. We find it in the rows in the vineyard where I work. It is frequently found late summer and fall after a rain in areas where the grass is cut very short.

We use a flail mower in the vineyard which cuts and pulverizes grass to dirt level, allowing the light cream-colored caps to be very visible when they begin to grow. The physical mixing of grass and dirt by the flail mower probably assists in the growth and spread of A. campestris.

This is a close relative of the button mushrooms and Portabellas you find at the grocers. However, the flavor of the Meadow Mushroom is very rich and much superior to the varieties available in the store. Given favorable conditions, you sometimes find A. campestris in great abundance, in quantities that can fill baskets and bags.

Grifola fo' breakfast

Almost 2" of rain and drizzle in the Shenandoah Valley over the last 4 days has improved the mushroom situation. I hope to post some photos over the next couple days of things I find this late in the season. Freeze warning tonight, but weather should warm afterward. I'll start off the current round of findings with what I had for breakfast this morning:



This is a toasted bagel w/Grifola frondosa and white cheddar cheese. "Maitake" as the mushroom is known in grocery stores is touted for its health benefits and somewhat nutty aroma. Wild specimens are usually very meaty and flavorful. The mushroom was pulled apart and fried with butter until slightly crispy. White cheddar cheese was mixed with the salted, fried mushrooms, put on top of the bagel and microwaved to melt the cheese. This holds the topping on the bagel. Breakfast was delicious.



This is the same G. frondosa but the mushroom was marinated in cabernet sauvignon *juice* and soy sauce. The marinated mushrooms and marinade were fried w/onions in olive oil and a couple drops sesame oil, and a dash of red pepper. Rice was added to soak up the excess marinade and give bulk to the meal.



This is the G. frondosa, or Hen of the Woods, or Maitake growing next to what I assume is an oak stump. In my experience it is usually more gray in color. This one was various shades of dark brown. The dull, dark brown color usually is indicative of age, but this one was fresh and tender. The caps were very thick and dense, more like thick lobes, making the mushroom feel heavy for its size, a couple pounds at least.

Lycoperdon pyriforme

Lycoperdon pyriforme is a small, pear shaped puffball commonly found growing on fallen trees. It is edible when the interior is pure white, but not especially flavorful. I plan to to cut it into cubes and marinate it in a balsamic-based marinade to give it some flavor, then eat it with rice.

Hygrocybe species

This brilliant red Hygrocybe caught my eye from some distance. I thought it might have been a brightly colored fallen leaf, but because it was next to a spring I decided to check it out. It is relatively large for a Hygrocybe. There are several bright red Hygrocybes. The orange cap-margin is distinctive. The distant, decurrent gills suggest H. appalachianensis. Reportedly edible but tasteless.

Laetiporus sulphureus

Pickings are still slim in and around the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia. Lack of significant rain has reduced the mushroom harvest to almost nothing. I did find the showy Chicken of the Woods, Laetiporus sulphureus. A good edible when fresh, soft and moist, the above was pass its prime. It had reached inedible maturity, dry and tough. This species of Laetiporus is characterized by a sulfur-yellow fertile surface seen on the underside in the photo.