It’s weird. It’s white. It’s a whopper. And right now, it could be lurking in your garden.
Thanks to our cool, wet fall, this is a bumper year for fungi in southern Ontario. They’re popping up everywhere — in lawns, flower beds, sports fields, public parks, woods, even suburban driveways — and their quirky shapes, sizes and growth habits are both fascinating and fun.
Spot a Stinkhorn (they often appear suddenly in urban gardens), and you may even blush, because this curvy, erect mushroom bears a startling resemblance to — ahem — a certain part of male anatomy.
Other fungi intrigue in a more sinister way.
Are they a manifestation of Mother Nature’s dark side? Perhaps. For whenever I encounter a deathly white Destroying Angel, Amanita verna, in evergreen woods in fall, I shudder, because this so-called “angel” somehow looks poisonous. And it is.
However, one I love is the Giant Puffball, Calvatia gigantea. It tends to grow in the same spot every year and on my land, that’s under some old apple trees. I’m always on tenterhooks in September, thinking “Will I get some? Won’t I?” This year, two monsters materialized. They looked rather like white motorcycle helmets left behind by partying bikers — or full moons, dropped from the sky.
What’s remarkable is that puffballs reach this immense size in only a few days. Blink and wham, it’s happened. They’re also good to eat, although preparing them admittedly takes nerve. I always feel rather like a brain surgeon, cutting into the flesh, because their shape and smooth skin reminds me uncomfortably of a human head. Yet get over that and they taste like mushroomy scrambled eggs.
This year, I chopped one into chunks and sautéed the soft, cottony pieces in butter and olive oil with Spanish onion and parsley. The flavour was perfect with Mexican-style beans and tortillas. I’ve also, in the past, cut puffballs into thick slices to roast in the oven, a popular method in the U.K., where they are often on sale at farmers’ markets in fall.
And here’s the kicker: because the puffball is so big, you can’t confuse it with dangerous fungi. It’s easy to recognize. So be brave. Try one. A few tips:
• Edible puffballs have skin that’s white all over and smooth. If it’s going beige and wrinkly, they’re no longer fresh.
• Lift them gently from the ground — they come out cleanly — and immediately check the underside for pin holes. These indicate worms — a common occurrence. I simply cut out the wormy bits out if they aren’t numerous.
• Always peel off the skin. And don’t cook any flesh that looks yellow when you cut the puffball open.
• A final warning: NEVER collect these amazing mushrooms when they’re still small and button-like. It’s too easy to confuse them with those deadly Amanitas. Wait till they swell up.
It happens fast — and what fun they are in fall.
Speak Your Mind