The wonderful Morel. A gourmet find actually. I will be sure to post a recipe for this extremely rich and delicious jewel of the fungi family as soon as our small crop matures. The strong, earthy, almost nutty flavor of the morel mushroom makes it a favorite choice of cooks and consumers. A short harvesting season for wild morels -- several months in the spring -- and difficulty growing them commercially means that these mushrooms may be hard to find. They’re worth searching for because they’re a good source of minerals and vitamin D. Their are many other relevant health benefits readily accessable online. For information on identifying and finding these wild wonders click here. You cannot eat these raw, and identifying them is important because of their deadly and similar relatives the false morels.
Miners lettuce. The common name miner's lettuce refers to its use by California Gold Rush miners who ate it to get their vitamin C to prevent scurvy. It can be eaten as a leaf vegetable. Most commonly it is eaten raw in salads, but it is not quite as delicate as other lettuce. Sometimes it is boiled like spinach, which it resembles in taste.
Watercress. Gram for gram, it contains more iron than spinach, more vitamin C than oranges and more calcium than milk. Sadly, it is widely noted that wild grown watercress, such as plants found in streams, is almost positively contaminated and should only be ingested in cases of survival. There are many pollutants passed on from grazing livestock. I wish there was a way to revive the little plants under our bridge to an edible state...
Turkey Tail Mushroom. This prevelant speciesies of mushroom is likely found on tree stumps or decaying downed wood. A promising clinical study shows that the turkey tail mushroom (Trametes versicolor) improves the immune systems of breast cancer patients. Methods of preparation are simple. To get the maximum health benefits from them it is best to boil them in a tea:
1st: Dry the mushrooms (Which I do speedily in the oven, on it's lowest setting, for about 15-10 mins)
2nd: Grind or chop up around 3 g
3rd: Boil it for around 15 minutes in about 20 ounces of water, strain, and than enjoy.
As far as foraging in my own garden goes....
My all important soybeans are on the move. I plan to attempt some neighbor of tofu, replace meat with these, and of course enjoy some sauteed edamame.
My herb patch in the beginning stages. I just spread basil, thyme, chamomile, echinacea, parsley and dill seeds this morning. Rosemary and oregano have been happily transplanted to their permanent domain.
Potato patch has begun after literally just chucking some sprouting organic potatoes in the ground.
The kale and butterhead lettuce is sprouting.
lovely overcast sunday
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