Friday, April 15, 2011

Good Morels (mushrooms!)

On my way back from the 'stairway to ramp heaven' I made a foraging find that made the day seem like it was born of magic, unicorns and rainbows... i found some morels! And not the kind I have to kneel down a pray for, but the kind I kneel down and pluck from the earth... Huge wild morel mushrooms. The most morels I have ever held, the most I have ever seen, the biggest most beautiful... morels the size of a f-en pine cone! we literally stumbled upon the patch of morels when walking back through the forest and (not) trespassing past someone's house... (omg, i stole someone's morels--- does this mean deep down i have no morals?) I did take the mushrooms, and shook them all around the area where i plucked a few... trying to spread spores in what seemed to be a perfect environment for growing them- there were sooo many! I made sure to leave many morels growing too, so spores could take wind and make many more.
WHEN I GOT HOME WITH MY MORELS :::::
i know it can be futile to attempt to grow morel mushrooms on purpose, but it's always worth a try. I wrapped the mushrooms in a cheese cloth and took them into the woods - shaking the cloth lightly to let spores loose into the air.
and my second trick, in hopes to grow my own... i filled a bowl full of spring water, let the morels soak for an hour or so --- then i took the spore filled water outside and spread it around in spots I thought they'd enjoy propogating.
THEN I COOKED Um' UP! :::::::

mmmmmm


  • I cut each one down the middle (after rinsing it) , added ramps (wild leeks), parsley and rosemary to a pan.

  • Alot of moisture came from the mushrooms, which i drained off twice. Once the water was drained off enough, i added some oil and let them cook on low/medium for about 7-10 minutes (until darker brown.)

  • I put it over (gluten free) rice pasta with olive oil and pink salt!
SooOOOooOOo delicious, it felt like a sin.
XoxoxoX

7 comments:

Benjammin said...

A woman after my own heart! I love wild mushrooms :)

Stephanie Alice Rogers said...

Mmmm, morels! They look so gross but they are so damn delicious!

Miss Voodoo said...

ha!
i thought they look nasty too, especially after being cooked... looks like old rotten steak hunks or something?

Jack said...

You may have no morals,but if you didn't take some you would have no morels.

kirk said...

---Very nice!! if you dry them in a dehydrator the spores will collect on the bottom tray---up here we get the verpa bohemica coming up first--don't eat those...then the true morels about when the trillium start to blossum.

aka, Jodie said...

That is so awesome, you're so lucky! I've never tasted a morel, I really hope to one day. I looove mushrooms (eat them pretty much every day) We've looked for morels in the past, but never found any : (
Glad to hear you had such a super day an things are looking up after that harsh winter : )

Anonymous said...

morelsare awesomely delicious and very seasonal. dont tell anybody your spot or u will have to beat them to it next year.also goood luck trying to grow them. my grandparents have always told me it couldnt be done.