Search this site

News & Stories / Message from Our Outgoing CEO It has been a distinct pleasure and honor to serve our club as CEO over the past four year. I must admit I accepted the job with considerable trepidation. With assurances from the other ministers (Henry Young in particular) that they would assist me if needed, I entered my name in the election. Bill White • May 1, 2009 Bill White It was a runaway victory made possible by the fact that no one else ran. As we come to the end of our FFSC fiscal year I have decided not run again for the CEO position. I think a new CEO can bring fresh ideas and energy to the task and help the club to continue to grow and prosper. I plan to stay involved with the club and will see you at the meetings and events. I have thoroughly enjoyed the experience and camaraderie. Minister positions are made even more enjoyable by the monthly Minister meetings at each others’ homes for dinner and FFSC business. It creates a fine opportunity to learn more about the club history as well as the other ministers. The food and wine make it even more fun. At the May general meeting the FFSC is holding elections for minister positions. I encourage all of you to attend and consider volunteering as a minister. Step-up and give some of your energy and time to help the club meet its goals for the community by entering your name for one of the open Minister positions. You will enjoy it as much as I have. Several Ministers are due special recognition for their contribution to the FFSC. Vernetta McGuire, our Minister of Culinary Events (with the capable assistance of hubby Bill) for her tireless efforts planning and executing the Christmas potluck and the highly admired Wine & Mushroom Feast. We owe her a debt of gratitude for her years of service to the FFSC. Margaret Carpenter and Richard Lyness are co-ministers taking on the challenges of the Culinary Committee. Monise Sheehan has worked diligently as the Minister of Stores for six years, generating considerable revenue for the club. She is stepping down and I must admit that she will be missed and difficult to replace. This is an extremely important position that provides the main source of revenue for the club. We are seeking a person who can follow her example and continue to coordinate our main finance source. The other Ministers are due their recognition too but I cannot put them all in this short piece. My apologies that I cannot detail the contributions of Marge Young, Richard Rammer, John Brown, and all of the other Ministers who give their energies tirelessly to make this club one of the premier clubs in NAMA. Our April speaker, Dr. Elio Schaechter, commented that the FFSC is different and more dynamic than most other myco-clubs he has visited. I suspected as much but his comments confirmed it for me. And his opinion is shared around the country — the Fungus Federation of Santa Cruz is special. This is because of our members and the way the FFSC conducts business. We want you to help perpetuate our image with your involvement in setting goals, policies and activities. Come get more involved and expand your enjoyment of the FFSC by becoming a Minister. Bill White CEO Fungus Federation of Santa Cruz Members Only Content Login Join FFSC Related Posts Message From Our Incoming CEO 2009 Previous Article All News & Stories Next Article

Foray Potlucks After a day of foraging in Mendocino, Tahoe, and farther afield, create an amazing gourmet potluck feast as you share tales of the hunt around a warm campfire. Members Only Content Login Join FFSC

News & Stories / An Amanita Poisoning Account I had a very big surprise recently. As I was coming upstairs from my shop, I saw a strange truck pull into the driveway. A man, somewhat familiar, walked up to me and said, “remember early September?” Phil Carpenter • March 1, 2007 "Club Dead" - Amanita phalloides. © Debbie Viess (from mushroomobserver.org) “Oh, my god, you came by after eating Amanita phalloides ”. “Yes, and one of the things I recall vividly is that you said I might need a new liver. Well, I’ve got one!” I asked him if he’d mind if I got his full story since I didn’t get any details at the time of the incident. It’s really difficult for me to grill people about their names and the circumstances of how they managed to poison themselves on deadly Amanitas, especially when it’s clear that they are really, really sick. He did tell me in September that he’d let me know how things came out with his experience. It turned out to be an incredible horrific story. When he and his wife showed up at my house on 9 Sept. ’06, it was clear that he was in bad shape. They had examples of the mushrooms and even though it was long before any rain had fallen and the examples were small and quite pale in color, it was clear that they were death caps. I was somewhat puzzled because they had their copy of Mushrooms Demystified along but had deduced that the spore print they had taken was pink and not white. At that time, I told them to delay no longer and go immediately to the closest hospital, in this case Watsonville. Saturday, I found out that it was only AFTER he had eaten them that he checked the reference. He said he went by memory back to a nice tasting mushroom he’d picked 15 years previously that he thought the current Amanitas looked like. He said that he spent a delirious 30 hours at the hospital in Watsonville where he was on IVs for dehydration and lots of oral charcoal. He was then transported up to the medical center at UCSF where he spent another awful three or four days before his liver transplant. He recalled being in absolute misery and pain and felt sure that he would die. He even dictated a will to his family. After the liver transplant, major complications set in, predominantly kidney problems. He said he spent three full weeks after the surgery in incredible pain with only IV feedings and heavy medication the full time. During that time he said he could not eat anything and he could barely function. He says he still has tightness in his stomach muscles, numbness at the point of the incision and a lot of numbness in his right arm, an remnant of either the IV or some other issue with the hospital stay. He said that his body is just now starting to produce red blood cells again. As a consequence his energy level is extremely low. The good news is that his liver is in great shape although he is still on anti-rejection meds, something he said may go on the rest of his life. He related that the major impact of the meal he ate, besides a very painful near-death experience, has been the cost. At this point medications are running him $1500 per month. The stay at the hospital in Watsonville was over $150,000, the ambulance ride up to San Francisco was $34,000 and the total to date (6 months later) is over $800,000! And the clincher? NO INSURANCE! What amazed me was he appeared to be a very happy man. He joked around a lot and seemed to be in excellent spirits. He told his story as if it were some kind of pleasant book he read or something. I didn’t ask how he was possibly going to pay for his expenses and he didn’t volunteer. At least he is still alive but what a story!!! Members Only Content Login Join FFSC Related Posts Yikes! Theres a Fly in My Mushroom! Previous Article All News & Stories Next Article

Sorry, it's a Suillus "Look at all these Boletes!" As an eager beginner, you spend an hour in the woods collecting what you think is going to be the meal of the year.... Sorry… it's a Suillus . It's the culinary equivalent of a wet sponge, and a maggot riddled one at that! by Adam Ryszka Suillus luteus (from scmycoflora.org) One of the most common remarks I get from eager beginners in the fall and winter is, "look at all these Boletes!" Excited that they have just hit the mother load of culinary excellence, I remark (as many before me), "sorry… it's a Suillus ". As what a Suillus is and why it is not on par with a "true" Bolete is explained, you can see the disappointment set in. Just one of those mushroom "rights of passage" we all have to go through. You spend an hour in the woods collecting what you think is going to be the meal of the year, only to find out you have the culinary equivalent of a wet sponge, and a maggot riddled one at that! With a little time and experience however Suillus is one of our easier local fungi to ID at the genus level simply by sight. Suillus pseudobrevipes . Photo by Christian Schwarz Suillus in generic terms is a Bolete, a common reference for pored terrestrial mushrooms in our area. In scientific terms they are in the order Boletales , defacto making them a Bolete. However Suillus is not only in a different genus, they are now in their own family Suillaceae . So what do they have in common with the mushrooms in the genus Boletus that trip people up? A few things: overall stature, pores instead of gills, habitat, color (sort of) and wishful thinking… When you see literally 20lbs of light-brown capped, pored mushrooms poking through the duff in a stand of pines the mushroom fever kicks in, and what in actuality is Suillus pungens , for a few frenzied moments is the greatest haul of Boletus edulis ever. Someone once said if you listen closely you can actually hear the mushrooms laughing at you… So what makes a Suillus a Suillus and not a Boletus , Leccinum, Aureoboletus , Buchwaldoboletus , Chalciporus , Tylopilus , Xerocomellus or Xerocomus ??? Lots of things, but here are a few stand-out macro characteristics that can be applied quickly in the field. First off, commonness and sheer quantity. Suillus outnumbers Boletus by what at times seems to be a billion to one. That epic patch you just stumbled on is not Boletus , it's Suillus . If it seemed too good to be true, that is because it is. The mushroom world plays by those rules as well. Also, Suillus will fruit fall through spring, whereas the prized edible Boletes tend to in fall and early winter, and normally only for a few weeks at best. Next is the slime! With the exception of one species in Aureoboletus , none of the "Boletes" even remotely come close to the cap slime, stickiness or goo of Suillus . Those pesky glandular dots! These always confuse people, so the simplest description I can give is small, dark dots or blotches on the stem that are greasy to the touch. None of the other Boletes have these (scabers on Leccinum are more bumpy and hard). Another characteristic I go with is smell. Suillus tends to have a very fresh, almost fruity aroma. It is very pleasant and reminds people of frozen orange juice or coniferous trees. And finally the "close, but not enough" characteristics of size and color. Suillus can be big mushrooms, but Boletus are normally bigger. Suillus caps tend to be brownish, but not as brown or brick red as Boletus caps. Suillus have pores, but they are not quite like Boletus . Really after an exhaustive survey of both genera one sees there is little in common when observed at a more objective, granular level. Here is a "scientific" description we have put together on the Santa Cruz Mycoflora Project website, for those that need a bit more: Suillus is a large and cosmopolitan genus, present throughout the world (in some places due to introduction). Recognition of the genus can take some time (since they are quite variable and intergrade to some degree with other bolete genera). The fruitbodies are usually medium-sized boletes. The caps are variably colored and show many different textures (smooth and extremely viscid to dry and scaly or hairy), but most have an easily-peeled skin (unlike many other boletes). The pores are often angular or slightly irregular and sometimes radially-arranged. Inspection of the stipe is important, as almost all species show either a partial veil or greasy glandular dots (the latter trait is unique to the genus). All are mycorrhizal, occurring in almost any setting as long as there are coniferous hosts in the family Pinaceae present. In our county, these hosts are the true pines and Douglas-fir. The genus is fairly speciose in California, with diversity structured around host and habitat specialization. Many species likely are undescribed or go by misapplied names. Fruitbodies found under non-native pines should be compared directly against European references, a number of Eurasian Suillus have been recorded in other parts of the state." -- Genus: Suillus , the Santa Cruz Mycoflora Project All jokes and remarks aside, what about actually eating them? I have read in Europe they are regularly eaten and in some areas, mainly Slavic countries, they are a prized edible. Locally they are typically shunned in favor of the "real" Boletes, chanterelles, Amanitas , etc. I have eaten a few of the local species and admittedly they were not that bad. Only fresh, firm buttons were used and the cap skin and slime was pealed off. If you can, remove the pores as well. They were fried in light butter and salt and eaten by themselves. One time they were added to a basic soup. Suillus pungens in my opinion is the best tasting one, but as fate would have it is also the most slimy one! S. pseudobrevipes was not too shabby and both S. caerulescens and S. fuscotomentosus were palatable. Since during our mushroom season you are literally almost guaranteed to find Suillus at any given time, it is worth giving them a shot as an edible. If you like them you will never be out of mushrooms again! Suillus actually are an interesting fungi to study as they have a very strict preference for mychorhizal hosts and apparently have very strict parasitic companions as well. Years of field work are showing that fungi in the family Gomphidiaceae parasitize Suillus on an intimate level. If research is correct literally each species of Suillus lives with only one type of conifer and is in turn parasitized by a specific species in Gomphidiaceae ! That is pretty specialized stuff! If you pay attention in our local woods you can witness this behavior for yourself. But alas, this is knowledge just for the science geeks amongst us, and at the end of the day for the average forager Suillus will remain the mushroom world's consolation prize in the sweepstakes for Boletes. Mushrooms covered: Suillus caerulescens (fat jack, douglas-fir suillus) Suillus fuscotomentosus (poor man's slippery jack) Suillus pseudobrevipes ( veiled short-stemmed slippery jack) Suillus pungens (pungent slippery jack) Suillus sp. Previous Description All Featured Fungi Next Description

News & Stories / Mushroom Photo Exhibition An exhibition of Barbara Cordes' amazing fungal photography is on now at Odonata Winery Tasting Room . Deb • March 10, 2014 Odonata winery glass (from odonatawines.com). The exhibition is at 2343 Mission St. in Santa Cruz, March 6th-30th, 2014. I stopped in and I'll tell you, it was such a treat to see all the nice, drippy fruitings I missed this winter! Couple that with Dennis Hoey's delicious wine and you'll be a happy camper. Dennis got his start in winemaking working with Jeff Emery of Santa Cruz Mountain Vineyard and continues as SCMV's Production Manager. Members Only Content Login Join FFSC Related Posts Forager's Feast Photo Album Previous Article All News & Stories Next Article

News & Stories / New Treatment in Mushroom Poisoning On New Year’s Day a family of six set out for a walk and encountered a good variety of mushrooms. The mushrooms were identified by the grandmother, who had some experience collecting mushrooms in Mexico. They gathered six different varieties, then headed home and made mushroom tacos. Deb • March 1, 2007 Silybin is a compound within Silymarin, an extract of Milk Thistle (from christopherhobbs.com) On January 2 they came to the Dominican Hospital Emergency Department complaining of nausea, vomiting and diarrhea. Samples of four of the six species were available and identified by FFSC member Mark Gillespie as Lyophyllum decastes , Russula brevipes , Russula chamaeleontina and Lactarius alnicola . Only the L. alnicola is considered inedible due to its acrid latex. Based on liver enzyme levels, it was presumed that one of the other two mushrooms consumed was Amanita phalloides . Treatment for amatoxins in the US is generally supportive, as there is no known antidote. The end result can be a liver transplant (see An Amanita Poisoning Account ) or death, though some come through with liver intact. But a very different path was taken in this case. Dr. Todd Mitchell, hospitalist at Dominican Santa Cruz Hospital, was caring for the family. In researching mushroom poisoning, he came across references to treatment with milk thistle extract for liver damage. Intravenous silymarin extract has been used in Germany with promising results for treatment of mushroom poisoning. This is often discussed in mycological circles but apparently not widely disseminated in the medical community. Indeed, it had never been used in the US for this purpose. Drs. Todd Mitchell and Wendy Knapp made extraordinary efforts to contact the manufacturer in Belgium, obtain protocols for use, solicit emergency FDA approval as an investigative drug (without which shipment was illegal and impossible) and rush the drug, Legalon-Sil, to California. All of this happened extremely quickly, as time was critical. (For a detailed, suspenseful account, BAMS has reprinted a Santa Cruz Sentinel article about the incident, written by Jondi Gumz.) In the meantime, Bio-Silymarin milk thistle extract capsules from Aloha Medicinals here in Santa Cruz were administered to the patients. Five of the six were then transferred to California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco, which has a large liver transplant program and greater capacity to care for such a large influx of patients. They agreed to utilize the Legalon-Sil according to the new protocol to treat the two most gravely ill patients, the 83 year old grandmother and the 29 year old man. The grandmother, due to her advanced age, was not a good transplant candidate. The young man seemed destined for a transplant. The other family members recovered and were discharged. Sadly, the grandmother died as a result of the mushroom poisoning. Her liver was recovering and then her kidneys failed. The 29 year old, however, recovered without transplant. Was it because of the silymarin? Unknown. But the significant development is that now this potential treatment can be utilized here, and data collected and evaluated. “We’re going to work closely with the Poison Control Center, Madaus (the manufacturer) and the FDA to allow us to maintain a supply of this medicine in Northern California so it’s available to be used within 12-24 hours,” Mitchell said. In conclusion, Drs. Mitchell and Knapp, Dominican Hospital and California Pacific Medical Center are to be commended for taking bold steps not taken elsewhere in this country. Common names : St. Mary's Thistle, holy thistle. Sometimes called silymarin, after the Latin name Silybum marianum . History : Native to the Mediterranean. Used for thousands of years as a remedy for ailments, especially liver problems. Typically used to treat liver cirrhosis, chronic hepatitis and gallbladder disorders. How it is used : Silymarin can be extracted from the seeds, believed to be the biologically active part. Important : Eating milk thistle or taking a milk thistle supplement is not a cure for mushroom toxicity. Silymarin is a highly purified, intravenously administered extract. If you believe you or someone you know may be experiencing mushroom poisoning or an adverse reaction to eating a mushroom, call 911. To learn more, see Mushroom Poisoning . Members Only Content Login Join FFSC Related Posts An Amanita Poisoning Account Matsutake or Amanita? Thank You, Debbie Viess! Previous Article All News & Stories Next Article

News & Stories / Stewardship Special Thanks from Minister of Stores A special thanks to everyone who helped get us through the 2001 Santa Cruz Fungus Fair. John Brown • March 1, 2001 FFSC store at a past Santa Cruz Fungus Fair. Photo by Mary Alice Jonason Davis Members Only Content Login Join FFSC Related Posts Previous Article All News & Stories Next Article

News & Stories / FFSC Celebrates Twenty Years of Fungal Fun Maintenance In September of 1984, a flyer circulated in Santa Cruz, announcing "The Fungus Federation Wants You!". Mushroom lovers responded, and the FFSC was born. Deb • September 1, 2004 FFSC Patch, December 1985 2004 marks the 20th anniversary of this facetious federation, and celebration is definitely in order! Joseph Schultz, Santa Cruz culinary deity and patron saint of mushrooms, will give a cooking demonstration for the first general meeting of the season on Wednesday, September 15th. Don't miss it! Looking back through twenty years' worth of newsletters, archives, and ephemera to put together a retrospective has been a blast. A small group of quirky individuals, united by their love of fungi, food, and fun, created the perfect vehicle for the enjoyment of all of it. The group has grown in size, but the primary goal of "Keeping the FUN in Fungus" has been resolutely maintained! Many have learned to safely collect wild mushrooms through classes, lectures, and forays, and the community as a whole has been exposed to mycology through our annual Fungus Fairs. Space probes have thus far failed to bring back evidence of better potlucks anywhere in the solar system! It seems common for groups to become insular and stuffy over time, but the Fungus Federation has, happily, resisted that tendency, and I, for one, am proud to be a part of this group. Starting as The Federation Flyer , edited by David Arora and Bob Sellers, the newsletter turned into Ascus and finally morphed into Duff in 1985. Past editors also included Bridget Binko, Ford Johnson, Gregg Ferguson, Flick Christensen, Larry Payne, Madeleine Wyke, and Roxann Hills. We recognize and appreciate their countless hours of effort through the years. You’ll find pictures from the Archives and excerpts from past newsletters sprinkled throughout this issue. Have fun figuring out who's who! Some are labeled, some aren’t. Thanks to Gloria Woodside for maintaining the Archives, our history bank. Thanks also to Bob Sellers, Bill McGuire, Shea and Jerry Moss, Marje and Henry Young, and Phil Carpenter for serving as our "institutional memory" as to people, places, and things! Mark Gillespie, Minister of Membership, keeps up with all the minutiae - address changes, e-mail notification lists, and current lists for events. Thanks, Mark! - Debbie Johnson, Current Propagandist 2026 Editor's Note: The images below are intentionally small, because the original resolution was very low (even Adobe and Topaz cannot recover some of them). Forays Near and Far Sue Willis' Column from The Federation Flyer, October 1984 Sue Willis’ column from The FEDERATION FLYER October 1984 Dear Sue: My problem is I've got too much slime on my hands! Slippery jacks are about the most common thing in this neck of the woods. I have fried them and dried them, boiled them and broiled them, stripped them and dipped them, sauteed them and souffled them, but no matter what I do they turn out too %*S"*&I slimy. Yet my field guide labels them "edible and choice!" What am I doing wrong and how can I cook them so they turn out nice and dry like Agaricus ? SLIME TO SPARE New Brighton Dear Slime: Your problem is not one of ineptitude, but ATTITUDE. You are a victim of creeping "slimism," an unwarranted and irrational prejudice against slime. Your first job, therefore, is to purge yourself of this insidious affliction. You can start by realizing that slime is an inescapable and indispensable part of life - you are full of it and so is everyone else! Without mucus, life as we know it would be impossible. Also realize that many of our most exalted foods are slimy, sticky or gelatinous: oysters, escargot, caviar, sashimi, not to mention more mundane fare such as okra, jello, apricot jam and the raw eggs I had for breakfast this morning. Come to think of it, even ice cream has a high mucus content and so do the very best gravies, particularly if they contain cornstarch. Why, then, do you tolerate the slime in these foods but not in slippery jacks? Simple: Because you expect them to be what they are, you accept them the way they are. I repeat: Because you expect them to be what they are, you accept them the way they are! You don't try to make pasta with peanuts and you don't try to sweeten your coffee with salt (at least not on purpose), so why do you persist in trying to remove the slipperiness from slippery jacks? If you want them to be "dry like Agaricus " why not use Agaricus ? (God knows, there's enough of them in our supermarkets and their nauseating stench permeates the air around the 41st Ave. exit on Highway I.) The alternative is to take advantage of their inherent wetness. Make a list of all the slimy, slippery, sticky, gooey, viscous, gelatinous or glutinous foods you can think of. Then choose the ones you like the best and write down your favorite recipes for each one. You now have some excellent ideas for cooking slippery jacks. They make a yummy gumbo, for instance, or a sensuously succulent substitute for escargot! Dear Sue: My name's Knute (not my real name). Once upon a time I despised slippery jacks, but your moving essay on slime (Federation Flyer, Vol. I. No. 1) changed my life. Now I'm addicted to them! ln fact, I can't bear the thought of a cold winter morning without hot steaming slippery jacks. I'm sure I'm not alone among your readership in wishing that you would share one or two of your most succulent slippery jack recipes with us. GLUTTON FOR GLUTEN Corralitos Dear Gluten: 12 empty snail shells (garden variety is fine) 12 young, wet slippery jacks (or 6 larger ones) preferably collected just after a rain vegetable stock (or chicken) parsley sage rosemary butter carrots onions salt baking soda bread crumbs Remove the stems from the slippery jacks and reserve them for stock or catsup. Cut the caps in half if they are large, or leave them whole if they are buttons. Put them in a saucepan and barely cover them with stock (or equal parts stock and white wine). Add small amounts of finely diced carrots, onions (and/or shallots), and a generous bouquet garni of parsley, sage, and rosemary. Season with salt and simmer for 3-4 hours. Remove from flame and allow to cool gradually. Take the empty snail shells, make sure they are free of debris, and boil them in water for 30 minutes with baking soda added. Drain them, rinse in cold water, and dry. Put a dollop of beurre a la bourguignonne (see below) inside each snail shell and then stuff in a slippery jack. Seal with a little more beurre a la bourguignonne. Place the stuffed shells in a casserole dish with a little water and butter and sprinkle with fresh breadcrumbs. Warm in the oven and then serve - an evening to remember! Beurre a la bourguignonne: To 3 cups unsalted butter. add the following: 3/4 cup finely chopped shallots, 2 cloves garlic pounded into a paste, 2-3 tablespoons chopped parsley, 4 teaspoons salt. and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Blend. History of the Continental Picnic The Continental Picnic’s inauspicious beginnings were on Sunday, March 31, 1985, when sixty members of the newly formed Fungus Federation, led by David Arora, joined together at the Gray Whale Ranch. After a short foray on a warm sunny spring day, the novice fungiphiles, fortifying themselves with fine wine, gathered around local forays minister Ed Aguilar and nervously sampled the “day’s catch”: about a dozen Agaricus arvensis , a few Amanita velosa and several chanterelles. Then, while lounging around red and white checkered tablecloths spread on the poison oak infested meadows, we feasted on breads, cheeses and other fine fare, imbibed many goblets of delicious wines contributed by some fairly new and little known local vintners, Jerry & Shea Moss and David Bruce. We basked in the warm glow of comradeship and our common interests of the moment; memories of the poison oak lasted somewhat longer. Much has changed over the years. From those humble beginnings the FFSC has grown from a few curious fungiphiles to around 300 members. This annual event has evolved over the years from a continental style picnic to a sumptuous feast enjoyed by a hundred or more members gathering to share and enjoy mushroom related dishes and fungal fables. First Continental Picnic Announcement, March 1985 Trudging back to your car, tired and bedraggled, with a basketful of blewits, have you ever come across a couple of French or Italian mushroom hunters living it up in a sunny clearing around a red and white checked tablecloth, decked out with an array of breads, crackers, cheese spreads, fruits, goblets and wine? Well, on Sunday, March 31, we will do our best to put on our own interpretation of a Continental-style mushroom hunt. Photos from past Continental Picnics Incredible Edibles Fall Fashions for Fungal Foragers circa 1985 Learn more about our history! FFSC History Members Only Content Login Join FFSC Related Posts An Evening to Remember – FFSC 25th Anniversary Dinner A Short History of the Fungus Fair Previous Article All News & Stories Next Article

News & Stories / Matsutake or Amanita? Thank You, Debbie Viess! Since last year the Albion forays are one of my favorite times of the mushroom season. This season, at the first Albion, I joined Dawn, Drew, Sergiy and Richard to foray for matsutake. Maria Tanase • January 1, 2011 Western Matsutake (Tricholoma murrillianum). Photo by Hugh Smith At the first stop, three feet into the forest, Richard found the first cluster of mushrooms and he called Dawn to come from the car, to pick them. Unfortunately the cluster was a group of Russula and Lactarius, not matsies, and the spot was almost empty. Sergiy finally got 3 matsutake and I found 2 (one big, ID’d by Richard, and then a button). Back at the cars Dawn, looking at my button, asked how I could be sure that is a matsutake. At the next spot I found a few more matsutake and then we moved to a chanterelle spot. Having a good Santa Cruz chanterelle spot, I wasn’t too much into picking chanterelles so I started picking hedgehogs. Then I stepped on the Black Trumpets ( Craterellus cornucopioides ) and in no time my basket was full with blacks, even if it wasn’t their season. I learned later that this location is a known blacks spot by others, but none had thought to check it. Back at the Field Station I sorted and cleaned the mushrooms, but I still had a doubt about those two matsutakes. I asked Debbie Viess if she would take a look at my first pair of matsutakes and, as always, the answer was “Yes, I’d be glad to”. I took my first-picked matsutake from the bag and showed it to her. The answer was “yes it is a Matsie”, but when I showed her the second one, even with that button still in my hand, the answer was immediately “now that is a bad Amanita - Amanita silvicola ”. Then she and David explained to me, and a few other people around, the differences between matsutakes and Amanita and what to check for. A lesson I will never forget. Thank you to Debbie and to all FFSC club leaders. The organized forays are the best way to really learn mushrooms, and believe me with an Amanita in your basket by mistake, the lesson has much more weight. Learn more about these mushrooms: Tricholoma Murrillianum (Matsutake) Mykoweb: Amanita silvicola Mykoweb: Tricholoma murrillianum Members Only Content Login Join FFSC Related Posts Albion II, 2011 – Great Forays, Fungi and Food Memories of Matsutake Previous Article All News & Stories Next Article

Pressure Canning Mushrooms Pressure canning is a process for canning mushrooms while not utilizing vinegar to create an acid environment. by Sue Willis Pressure Cooker (stock photo) Have you had experience with this method? We would love to hear about your experiences so we can share them here. Advantages of pressure canning May be stored in pantry. Can be flavored with herbs, etc. if desired Works well for substantial mushrooms, such as Bolete buttons, Chanterelles, Russula spp ., etc. Disadvantages of pressure canning The pressure canning process is somewhat involved. Does not work well for more delicate mushrooms. Canning incorrectly can result in botulism, which can be fatal. Objective: Storage/Prep Total Time: Suggested Mushrooms: Boletus sp. (bolete) Cantharellus sp. (chanterelle) Russula cyanoxantha Equipment and/or Ingredients Required equipment: Pressure canning pot and rack; and sterilized canning jars and lids Method VERY IMPORTANT: Canning non-acid food requires careful technique and the use of a pressure canner to prevent botulism . Caused by the bacterium Clostridium botulinum , botulism produces neurotoxins and can be fatal . Instructions for pressure canning can be found in the Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving , or similar books on pressure cooking and canning. Previous Technique All Techniques Next Technique

Black Trumpet Pâté This has been a banner season for Craterellus . In this recipe, we use fresh cremini along with dried Craterellus for a blend of earthy flavors. by Felicity Christensen Craterellus calicornucopioides. © scissors2kil (CC-BY-NC) (from inaturalist.org, obs. 340954524) Method In a bowl or jar, cover the dried Craterellus in brandy and let sit for about 45 minutes until soft. Clean and roughly chop all of the cremini, and set aside. Extract the reconstituted mushrooms, squeezing the excess soaking liquid (brandy) back into the bowl, and chop. Strain the remaining soaking liquid (brandy) through a paper coffee filter into another bowl or jar, and reserve for later use (discard any dirt and unused solids). Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté shallots and garlic until soft (about 5 minutes). Add all the chopped cremini and Craterellus , and salt and pepper. Turn up the heat and cook, stirring constantly until the mushrooms' liquid evaporates and the mushrooms brown. Add 3 Tbsp. of reserved soaking brandy* (or 3 new Tbsp. brandy if no liquid was left) and herbs, and cook until all the liquid evaporates. Pour in the cream and stir, reducing until the cream evaporates and the pan is almost dry. Transfer to a food processor and pulse the mushroom and cream mixture until you have a spreadable texture. Add the nuts at the end, and pulse until the mushrooms mixture is fun and the nuts are spreadable but still chunky. Season to taste with salt, and pepper and lemon juice. Mix well and set aside to cool at room temperature. Serve in a crock with crackers or a good baguette. Zero waste tip : If you have any soaking brandy remaining after using the 3Tbs. in this recipe, it will have absorbed the earthy notes from the black trumpets. Don't drink it (even after straining it) because raw bacteria or wild yeast may remain in the unboiled liquid, and brandy's alcohol concentration isn't sufficient to kill them (especially after diluted by reconstituting the mushrooms). Instead, you can filter the reserved liquid a second time and cook it as part of other dishes, such as steak pan sauce, beef stew, mushroom gravy, risotto, etc. It can be stored for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator ( not at room temperature), or frozen in ice cube trays for longer-term storage. Recipe contributed: April 1998 Susanne and I are going to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary with a little vacation to Europe. Our Duff newsletter editor, and neighbor Flick, has convinced me that I must see England. If all the ladies are as charming as Flick is, I'm really going to enjoy the country. With Susanne, of course. In the meantime, I thought I would share this recipe from Felicity, which appears in Marjorie Young's and my book, From Duff to Dinner . I hope you enjoy this as much as I do. Bon Appetit! — Vince Viverito, Culinary Minister (1998) Editor's note: From Duff to Dinner is out of print. Copies are still available through online thrift bookstores. Objective: Appetizer Total Time: 2 or 3 hours Yield: 2 cups Suggested Mushrooms: Black trumpet / black chanterelle (Craterellus atrocinereus, Craterellus calicornucopioides, Craterellus cinereus) Portobello/portabella, champignon, cremini, button (Agaricus bisporus) Join FFSC or renew your membership to access the rest of this content. Join FFSC Login as an FFSC member to access the rest of this content. Login Ingredients 12 ounces fresh cremini mushrooms ( Agaricus bisporus ) 3 to 4 ounces dried Craterellus cornucopioides 4 tablespoons butter ½ cup finely chopped shallots 2 (or more) chopped garlic cloves Salt and pepper to taste 1 cup of fruity brandy, plus 2 to 3 tablespoons fruity brandy, as needed* 2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon (parsley or thyme will do in a pinch) 3-4 tablespoons heavy cream 1 cup walnuts, pecans or hazelnuts Juice of 1 lemon * Only needed if using all fresh mushrooms or there is no liquid left from reconstituting the dried ones. Pear, apple, or plain brandy mixed with triple sec or Cointreau works well. Previous Recipe All Recipes Next Recipe

News & Stories / Field Reports 2013 Echo Summit Foray Recap Our 2013 Echo Summit foray was met with stunning early Autumn weather, warm sunny days and clear night skies. The view from the California Alpine Club lodge was amazing and the company exceptional. Wendy Wells • September 21, 2013 Echo Summit Members Only Content Login Join FFSC Related Posts Echo Summit 2015 Foray Report Previous Article All News & Stories Next Article