Morelistic1

I took a mycology class in the spring and it was very interesting! Fungus is everywhere! Did you know that 80-85% of plants have a symbiotic relationship with fungus? Most mushrooms are not poisonous, but when they are you will most likely die or be severely compromised. For example, if you eat the white angle of death cap mushroom you will die of liver failure. I hear it is a slow death. Then there are the LBMs - little brown mushrooms. Some like to boil them in teas and get "high." But most of the time they boil the wrong mushrooms and get stomach cramps and gas. Of coarse, they could also be "high" but I imagine that is not the best chemical of choice. The LBMs go into the category of "not really edible but let us know if you live" mushrooms. The Vikings used to take the toadstool, that pretty red cap mushroom with white polka dots, and make some drink out of it. The side effects were acid-like followed by intestinal problems and perhaps impedance- oh wait, we call that E.D. now. There are tons of mushrooms in this category - not E.D. mushrooms, but ones that are not tasty and probably won't kill you. Finally, we have the mushrooms we love to eat. Button mushrooms - which are meadow mushrooms commercially cultivated. Did you know that when you let a button mushroom grow up it turns into a $7lb. Portobella mushroom!? Shitakis, oyster...uh...that's sorta it for commercially grown mushrooms that I can think of. Then there are the expensive ones: Chantrells, Morels, Truffles. These have a unique relationship with tree roots. I think that is why they have not been commercially cultivated. If someone can figure out how to grow these they would be RICH! So for now, people hunt these mushrooms and it is a real sport! I had the opportunity to go on a hunt with my professor. It was amazing! I collected 6 morels in 4 hours! Yes. That is sad but it was about the process, the patience...getting lost and running madly in the woods (which you are not supposed to do) and communing with nature. Some lucky SOB found a patch of 30 morels in 15 minutes. That made me look harder...only to find some coral mushrooms which looked edible but are not. Funny thing, when I was madly running through the forest I found more morels - about 4 of them! The other 2 took about 1 hour each to find. But they were worth it! At the store they go for $20lb. Just yesterday, we were camping in Idaho and guess what? We found a patch of 16 morels at our site! LUCKY!

MORELS and EGGS
Slice morels length-wise (as many as you want or can afford!)
Fry morels in bacon fat or live oil, lightly salt
Add about 4 - 6 scrambled eggs and mix of flip when ready.
Eggs and morels are a good combo!