So it is that time of year again, the days are getting shorter, the weather wetter, most people are busy lamenting the end of summer, or getting ready for a long winter inside.
I'm not doing much of that, autumn has always been my favorite time of year to be outside. The leaves turn beautiful colours, the plants reinvigorate after the long hot drought, the forest becomes alive with smells and sounds and, best of all; the mushrooms start blooming!
This year we got spatterings of rain throughout August and I've been on the lookout for something mushroomy to eat since the first drops fell. So far my search had been in vain, so in the hunt for greener pastures (or forests) I headed out to the west coast of the island. The forests are definitely greener out here.
While tromping through wet humusy undergrowth deep in the rainforests around Port Renfrew I stumbled upon this treasure poking up through the moss.
It didn't take me long to find a few more, and then, much to my glee and surprise I found another prized edible! Of course, in the moment of fervor I snached them up without first snapping a picture, so I'm afraid I can only show you them after the harvest.
So here we have it, the light orange mushrooms are some beautiful chanterelles (Cantharellus cibarius), as you can see the season has just begun and the mushrooms are still rather small. The other bright red mushrooms are Lobster mushrooms (Hypomyces lactifluorum)!
These are particularly interesting mushrooms as lobster mushrooms are actually two different species. the first is a Short-Stemmed Russula (Russula brevipes) that is parasitized by the red mold Hypomyces lactifluorum. The Russula is edible just on its own, but can be difficult to identify and lacking in flavor. Once it has been infected it becomes pretty easy to tell apart and Hypomyces gives the Russula the most amazing flavor! I've always thought lobsters mushrooms smelled and tasted like sea food when cooked, and the firm texture of the Russula lends to this idea.
Here they are, sauteed in left over bean sauce over the campfire. Doesn't get much better then this.
I will try to get a few more good shots of my mushroomy adventures this fall and hopefully I will have enough material to do a post on idenficication of both of these species. But we will have to see how the forest treats me...
Until next time!
Happy hunting!
- Katy
