Delicacies of Spring: Pleurotus pulmonarius and Asparagus officinalis, shortly before they met their end at my table.
You may have noticed that blog posts have been scarce lately. It’s finally Morchella esculenta season around here and I’ve been out two nights this week hunting and am going out again this morning in the time I’d normally be blogging. You’ll have to forgive me; with morels you’ve got two weeks to find them and that’s it for the year. Never fear! I’ll be back this afternoon Sunday(morel hunting was too good today! 12 finds and 9 taken home. Did not, however, strap them across the hood of my car, and more’s the pity) with a new post.
No morels yet, but oyster mushrooms (Pleurotus pulmonarius is the western flavor) and wild asparagus have been found — and found to be tasty. : ) I normally hate asparagus, but I could not believe the flavor difference of eating wild fresh-picked. It was sweet! Sweet like sweet peas — not bitter like most asparagus I’ve had. I’ve heard it’s the same with peas — the sugars degrade quickly after picking — which is why it’s best to buy them frozen unless you have your own garden.
If you can manage it, get out there and take a walk in the woods/on the prairie/on the shore today. It’s spring in the northern hemisphere, fall in the southern, and you lucky bums in the tropics always have it great. Get out there and experience life for yourself! Poke around and see what you can find growing, swimming, crawling, or flying. There’s no substitute for the real thing.
