As you may have guessed by my focus on Mushroom Mania, I’m a bit of a fan of fungi! I’ve talked to many of you in the shop about my mycological interest, whenever the topic of mushrooms comes up! (I was nerding out doing spore prints starting at about 10 years old 😄) This fall has been amazing so far, both for finding my favorites, and some that I’m still learning to become familiar with. Pictured here is my fall mushroom of choice, the Maitake (Grifola frondosa) also known commonly as Hen of the Woods. This particular one comes back every year on our property, at the base of an old oak tree, as long as the season brings enough moisture. The cluster can near 2 feet across, depending on conditions. (DO NOT rely on my pictures for identification, safety first.)
This mushroom is so delicious and claims many health benefits, but it can be a little challenging to clean. I do most of the work by cutting away the base, separating the fronds and using a stiff brush to remove as much of the grit as possible. (Opinel Mushroom Knife/Brush Here!) I use a standard mushroom brush as well as a couple of my old artist brushes that I’ve assigned to mushroom duty! This year, I went a step further and sprayed them off in the sink in the basket of a salad spinner, then gave them a whirl! I normally don’t wet mushrooms to clean them, as long as they aren’t buggy (these weren’t), but they needed a deeper cleaning from growing on our sandy ridge.
The salad spinner worked like a charm, and they were barely moist when I laid them out to dry on a towel. Super pleased with this tip! I sauteed these after simmering them in a little bone broth, then added some garlic and made a cream sauce to put over my gluten free pasta! If you’re interested in learning how to make a mushroom cream sauce, Karin’s autumn pasta class is featuring a wonderful recipe with rosemary and garlic!
Whether you are out there foraging the bounty of autumn or digging it up at one of the many surrounding Farmer's Markets, I wish you all the savory goodness of the season.
~Gretchen
 
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