I was just heading off for Bok's first walk of the day, when I spotted these fabulous twin Parasol Mushrooms growing by the side of the drive.
I think I say every year that these are one of the easiest identifiable mushrooms around; also one of the most delicious.
These particular ones are about 11 inches tall, and as you can see they have a very distinctive ring around the upper part of the stem. Difficult to confuse with any other.
If you are lucky enough to find some, throw away the stems, clean with a damp sponge, tear the caps into quarters, and fry in olive oil with a tiny sprinkling of salt.
A very meaty mushroom; we had them for lunch yesterday, and they were bloody marvellous.
Yum! Lucky Cro.
ReplyDeleteIt's very late in the year for such things.
DeleteI saw some of these last year at the roadside while we were cycling but resisted the temptation to stop and pick them. They are quite distinctive.
ReplyDeleteNext time! They are surprisingly delicious, not just 'mushroomy', but with a really special flavour.
DeleteWish we got wild mushrooms though I don't know if I'd be brave enough to eat those I gathered myself
ReplyDeleteNever eat any mushrooms that you're not 100% certain about. I regularly eat about 6 varieties that I know like the back of my hand, but leave all others.
DeleteIn other words dont touch any, Alien. Not worth the risk. I cant tell a mushroom from a toadstool. Me? I get them from Waitrose.
DeleteI'm with you there Rachel. I can recognise our common field mushroom - like the ones we buy in the supermarket only much stronger tasting when not grown commercially( don't know their name )- but I think all the others we see are poisonous !
DeletePlain white mushrooms can be the most deadly. Also there are very similar ones to the common field mushroom that will give you a terrible belly ache.
DeleteRoadside 'shrooms can be dangerous... they collect pollutants. Fine for occasional picking and eating if found beside a rural road.... but main roads never.... they have been shown to accumulate the heavy metals from the catalytic converters.....
ReplyDeleteParasols are one of my favourites..... cooked as per Cro's way... or a large cap as it flattens out.... anywhere twixt 18 and 30 cms makes a wonderful 'pizza' base... but don't overdo the ingredients.
Lay the cap upside down.
A little pesto, slices of onion, slices of chorizo, an egg in the middle... never tomato sauce.
You need just a little cheese... cantal jeune or mild cheddar grated over the other ingredients... in oven at 170 Centipede for twenty minutes.... serve!
My second favourite is the Lawyers Wig... or Shaggy Inkcap... Cro's way... or as a vegetarian chicken risotto.
Parasols and Shaggy Ink Caps seem to be good bed-fellows, they arrive at the same time. These Parasols we ate yesterday were so very good; people don't know what they're missing!
DeleteNot even a smidgen of garlic?
ReplyDeleteThey really don't need any extra flavouring; just a tiny amount of salt. You'd need to taste one to see why.
DeleteJust back from our early morning walk where we encountered a huge, black, male, Wild Boar. Bok was very brave, he stood his ground and growled. Only when the beast turned to go did he bark and run after him; even then he was a tad reluctant. This was the first one I've seen for years.
ReplyDeleteScary! We've seen a couple from the safety of our car but I've never come face to face with one.
DeleteThe first (and last) time I saw a wild boar at close quarters was in Berlin. It was a Sunday morning with few people about and it was following a lady crossing a very wide road junction to the bus stop. Before I had time to decide what to do a bus came and stopped in the middle of the road and rescued her. At which point the boar saw me and I was inside the nearest high-walled gate quicker than ein augenblick. I then had to dig deep into my German to explain to the puzzled householders what I was doing in their garden.
DeleteI must admit to being slightly wary this morning, probably more for Bok than myself. Luckily the beast saw sense, and retreated. They can do a lot of damage!
DeleteLucky you Cro! When I was a child we used to go to the mountains in Trentino to go mushroom seeking (licence needed), my mum recognised the variety, but I still haven't learnt; I'd rather stick to the tasteless button mushrooms by adding some dry porcini for more taste.
ReplyDeleteGreetings Maria x
We dry our own Porcini. My village is renowned for them!
DeleteOne that escaped the hunters' gun - scary.
ReplyDeleteI don't suppose he'll last too long, he seemed oblivious to human danger.
DeleteWonderful you've inspired me to take a little trip into our nearby woods this weekend. x
ReplyDeleteDon't eat anything you're not sure about. These are very identifiable.
DeleteI will stick with mushrooms from Waitrose thank you . A friend once gave my husband some mushrooms that he had picked, assured him they were ok to eat, but the next morning he was on the phone…..don't eat those mushrooms! Luckily he hadn't .
ReplyDeleteI've been gathering wild mushrooms for most of my life, but I still only pick just a few varieties that I know very well. One has to be cautious, although there are very few that will kill you.
DeleteWe had mushroom omelettes yesterday - sadly not parasols but large mushrooms from Ireland and they were delicious too.
ReplyDeleteI occasionally buy big fat commercial mushrooms for making veggie curries. They are very good too.
DeleteIt was a wonderful year for mushrooms here. I only collect yellow boletuses (hope that's the name), bay bolete and girolle/chanterelle - those three I know for sure.
ReplyDeleteOur two main mushroom are Cepes (Bolitus edulis) and Girolles. Both wonderful and plentiful, although we had no Cepes this year at all.
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