gil
|
anyone still foraging anything ?Think I've stopped till the first new shoots of greenery.
Anyone finding owt they'd recommend ?
|
AnnaD
|
I found some oyster mushrooms a couple of weeks ago, and had them on toast for lunch 
|
PeteS
|
Hello Gil,
I've been eating Wood Blewits every day for the past week. Today I found some massive ones in the New Forest - 19cm in diameter. The big ones were past it as far as eating goes (sill looked fantastic!) but there were plenty of smaller ones. For some reason Blewits are not very common in the New Forest but I have another patch about 5mins walk from my house that has been going mad this season.
Big Blewits
More Blewits
Road side Blewit
Also got a few Bay Boletes, one of which was in superb condition despite the recent rain. More locally there are Shaggy Parasols fruiting yet again.
As for greens I got plenty of Wood Sorrel and wild Chives.
It has been quiet on here recently but I can't be the only one with a Blewit glut. I have had to freeze a load of them too. Maybe everyone else is Christmas shopping.
|
AnnaD
|
I've seen those wood blewits quite a lot, but had no idea that they're edible. How do they taste?
I really need to read up more on mushrooms.
|
RichardW
|
Mussels are good this this of year
Justme
|
Bebo
|
Still got quite a few crab apples around here, but probably not for much longer the way the wind is blowing
|
Ian33568
|
Usually wild watercress in local streams but recently prohibited since people abused it and started collecting it by rake . destroying the plants and the habitat..... 
|
dpack
|
always something
watercress holding up well
less shrooms than i would like (dry autumn?)
berries and buds
|
jp
|
Like PeteS, I'm finding loads of Blewits, also some Parasols & Oysters. I'm hopeful that the recent warm(ish)/wet weateher might see some more shrooms in the new Forest in the next day or so...
|
PeteS
|
Later this afternoon, after the rain had past, I went out with the dog and as a bit of fun I had a go at foraging for lunch. In less than half an hour I had Wood Blewits, Chives, Ground Elder, Cow Parsley and Wood Sorrel. At home I made a rather tasty (well isn't it always when you use the stuff you've found) Blewit and wild herb Omelette. Of course I didn't forage for the eggs and the butter! Still all the rest was within 10mins of my house.
I also noticed young nettles, rose hips and Shaggy Parasols.
|
PeteS
|
| AnnaD wrote: | I've seen those wood blewits quite a lot, but had no idea that they're edible. How do they taste?
I really need to read up more on mushrooms. |
Blewits are one of my top 10 mushrooms. They have a unique and strong perfumed smell which often persists in cooking, The taste is quite strong too and they have a slippery texture, not that unlike Penny Buns/Ceps. However they should NOT be eaten raw and it is said that they have been known to cause allergic reactions in some sensitive people. Personally I think that this really is a small minority - wild Blewits use to be sold in markets and they are now cultivated in small numbers.
They make a superb omelette and I made a great risotto last week using fresh Blewits and dried Ceps/Penny Buns. You could still taste the perfumed taste of the Blewits over the earthy taste of the Ceps. The texture of the Blewits also went well with the creamy risotto rice.
|
PeteS
|
| jp wrote: | | Like PeteS, I'm finding loads of Blewits, also some Parasols & Oysters. I'm hopeful that the recent warm(ish)/wet weateher might see some more shrooms in the new Forest in the next day or so... |
It really is good for Blewits this season. In fact there are more in my local patch than there were last year. Conditions must be ideal for them. Why is it good for Blewits but not others?
Has anyone noticed that Wood Blewits seem to have a preference for Yew and rather bizzarly Cedar? The really big groups that I have found have been under Cedar.
|
AnnaD
|
| PeteS wrote: | | AnnaD wrote: | I've seen those wood blewits quite a lot, but had no idea that they're edible. How do they taste?
I really need to read up more on mushrooms. |
Blewits are one of my top 10 mushrooms. They have a unique and strong perfumed smell which often persists in cooking, The taste is quite strong too and they have a slippery texture, not that unlike Penny Buns/Ceps. However they should NOT be eaten raw and it is said that they have been known to cause allergic reactions in some sensitive people. Personally I think that this really is a small minority - wild Blewits use to be sold in markets and they are now cultivated in small numbers.
They make a superb omelette and I made a great risotto last week using fresh Blewits and dried Ceps/Penny Buns. You could still taste the perfumed taste of the Blewits over the earthy taste of the Ceps. The texture of the Blewits also went well with the creamy risotto rice. |
Sounds really good, thanks for the info
|
Yarrow
|
still plenty of medlars in my town, not too good at hoarding my nuts either, so I stock up on hazels from my compadres' back garden. Despite the fact that he only has a chainlink fence, and lives on the border of town and the woods, no squirrels ever take the nuts so I grow him a grove and pinch the excess...
|
PeteS
|
| jp wrote: | | Like PeteS, I'm finding loads of Blewits, also some Parasols & Oysters. I'm hopeful that the recent warm(ish)/wet weateher might see some more shrooms in the new Forest in the next day or so... |
Hello JP,
You could be correct. The Bay Boletes that I found last weekend were interesting. First I found one in a spot I'd never found them before. So I decided to check a known spot for Bay Boletes that was close and on the way home (I did not have much time left). In a few mins a found a couple more. These were all young - no more than a week, possibly 10 days old.
|
wildfoodie
|
processing but not foraging - clearing backlog of frozen plums damsons and sloes from freezer for a last batch of chutney, and currently squishing medlars thru a sieve ... have flavoured pulp with christmas spices and orange juice - going to dry some of it for xmas pressies for vegan friends. Medlar pulp doesnt seem to behave like most fruit pulps - the 1st batch I did were chewy chunklets - might try adding a bit of liquid to the next batch to loosen it up a bit. trial medlar leathers are tasty tho!
|
jp
|
| Quote: | | Has anyone noticed that Wood Blewits seem to have a preference for Yew and rather bizzarly Cedar? The really big groups that I have found have been under Cedar. |
Pete, not sure about Yew & Cedar (no Cedar around my way), but I've found most of my Wood Blewits in the vicinity of coniferous trees. If I found them close to yew, I'm not sure I would eat them - I'm sure I've read somewhere that shrooms living off Yew take on the toxic properties of that tree...
|
PeteS
|
| jp wrote: | | Pete, not sure about Yew & Cedar (no Cedar around my way), but I've found most of my Wood Blewits in the vicinity of coniferous trees. If I found them close to yew, I'm not sure I would eat them - I'm sure I've read somewhere that shrooms living off Yew take on the toxic properties of that tree... |
Well, I have eaten 250g plus of Wood Blewits in one go that have been growing under Yew and have felt great! However Blewits are a saprotrophic species, growing on decaying leaf litter, so there is not an association between it and the roots of the tree like in mycorrhizal species. I think that there might be a clue here in why they have done so well this year. It seems to me that many mycorrhizal fungi (which includes Ceps) have done badly this season while the saprotrophic have done well. For a mycorrhizal species the state of the tree must play a part in the health of the fungi.
When I have found them under Cedar (and there aren't many Cedar trees down here) I have found them in great numbers. In one Cedar there were 25+. I have not found them under Pine although I guess that they could well prefer coniferous tress.
The other mushroom that I have noticed this week is Lepista sordida - sort of an 'anorexic' Blewit - but it tastes just the same and seems to be less prone to worms. I have also noticed a lot of Lepista flacci (Tawny Funnel Cap). Some say that it's edible but I have not the courage to try it out.
PS - on the TV the other night there was a programme about the Yew. In it they mentioned that the wood was poisonous but they also said that there has NEVER been a recorded case of anyone getting poisoned by it.
|
Yarrow
|
or at least since records began 
|
Jamanda
|
| PeteS wrote: |
PS - on the TV the other night there was a programme about the Yew. In it they mentioned that the wood was poisonous but they also said that there has NEVER been a recorded case of anyone getting poisoned by it. |
How do they know it's poisonous then?
|
PeteS
|
| Jamanda wrote: | | PeteS wrote: |
PS - on the TV the other night there was a programme about the Yew. In it they mentioned that the wood was poisonous but they also said that there has NEVER been a recorded case of anyone getting poisoned by it. |
How do they know it's poisonous then? |
Because animals have been known to have been poisoned by it. But in the past parts of the Yew have been used for medicinal purposes. However, it is said that the flesh of the berries can be eaten but the seed are poisonous. Having said this my dog eats the berries inc seeds, to my great concern, but comes away full of life!
|
PeteS
|
PS - and I have eaten mushrooms under Yew and have come away feeling better than before
|
