This year with the on again off again entrance of spring and the reluctance of winter to leave has made for a challenging mushroom season in this area. Yesterday though, our efforts paid off. I called a friend of mine and he along with his wife joined me in a mushroom safari. We climbed down a cliff in the woods to find a spread of the yellow variety of morels. Further searching in all the "right" placed yielded naught. Lots of walking, creeping, looking and searching gave nothing more. We scaled the cliff and regrouped back at the trucks to venture forth to the next site. this one is a tiny Conservation Department holding of 24 acres that has given up its goodness in the past for me. Yesterday was no different except for the places the morels were found. We claimed our treasures and sped to the next two sites which gave us nothing but disappointment. In the end we accumulated over 80 of these tiny woodland treasures.
Worn out, aching, no, HURTING, I returned to my distant home and sliced the morels and placed them in a salt water bath in the refrigerator.
After waiting as long as I could, late this morning I enjoyed a mycological treat. Morel Mushrooms dipped in an egg and milk wash, rolled in seasoned corn meal and fried in butter. Oh My God! Revered along with an icy glass of sweet tea, my spirits were lifted and all was right in my world. I spent may hours with close friends, found these wild rewards and enjoyed the fruits of our labors. What could be better?
For this batch I use McCormick's Perfect Pinch Cajun seasoning, similar to season salt but with a slight bite to it. Man what a treat! Here's a before and after.
Soaking
Ready to eat.
Of course, while watching the thunderstorm I overcooked the first ones. But ya know what? They were GREAT!
2 comments:
You lucky fella you....down here all we grow are the mushy poisonous type.
yea Stephen, you don't know what you're missing!
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