We went out for a hike to enjoy the sunny winter day, and came back with some fun fungus finds. Not only did we get to appreciate the tranquility of the mossy woods, but thanks to the mild weather, we managed to fill our basket with chanterelles, hedgehog mushrooms, and white matsutakes. It was one of my more diverse mushroom hunting hauls, and in the middle of December to boot!
The hedgehog (sweet tooth) mushrooms are a nice winter treat around here after the chanterelles are gone. They’re usually very tiny, but you can usually find enough to make some good breakfast scrambles and soups. We were fortunate to find some unusually large ones peeking out from under a log, and they made up an entire breakfast all on their own.
I apologize for the blurry photo, but I wanted to convey the size of these monster hedgehogs.
My, what big teeth they have!
Not only did we come home with all the delicious specimens we foraged, but a friend at work gave us a good sized cauliflower mushroom, which is my very favorite. With the CSA done for the year and the greens in our garden narrowed down to kale, collards and chard, it’s a real treat to have fresh harvested food and an accomplished feeling to bring home such a delicious part of our dinner.
The only mushrooms I am comfortable with my skill to find are morels and boy do we love them! I would love to learn to identify the other edible types that grow here! Congrats on your delicious finds!
What a hoist! we are having a very mild season here (french alps) too and I was thinking just yesterday if I should go and see if I can't find some mushrooms (if it doesn't start getting cold soon i think the dandelions will start growing too!)
Morels are the best! They grow here in the spring, but we are still figuring out the complexities of where to find them. Happy mushroom hunting!
Dandelions would be a pretty nice winter treat too. I hope you make some good mushroom finds Emma.