Fall Fungus

So it’s October and the current weather could be compared to my last update in May. As usual the summer slipped by quickly, more quickly than usual due to the damp and depressed June and July that sat on the Northeast. Although we were well saturated in the early part of the summer, my fungus forays yielded meager results. There was a day in early July that I discovered a small grove of pristine chanterelles, but the full bolete bonanza never came to pass.

When a April-esque drenching came along, I was ready. The conclusion of the storm was well-timed, and my extended lunch break found me roaming the ravines of Dogtown. Things started out slow; a russula here, amanita there, but nothing for home. And then, aha! a noble golden crown perched on a bright green bed of moss, lulled by the swollen stream gushing nearby. I had happened upon a freshly sprouted 4 lb hen of the woods, which I swiftly trimmed and stashed. Not far away I found another prize, a troop of hedgehog mushrooms nestled beneath the towering oaks and beech trees, all of them clean and new to the world. The hedgehog, or sweet tooth mushroom, although considered common, has largely eluded my forays, so I was happy to pluck these robust, toothed fungi from their repose. There’s something quite satisfying about a successful foray. Soon I will stalk the woods for different quarry.

Black back soup with trumpets of death

There’s nothing more satisfying on a cold damp fall day than a piping hot bowl of fish soup served with chewy sourdough. Although the title belies a heavy concoction, this is full of bright and clean flavors more reminiscent of those crisp fall days when the sun sparkles.

Ingredients:

½ lb winter flounder fillets

¼ lb black trumpet mushrooms

½ lb udon noodles

1 tbs canola oil

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp red pepper flakes

2 tbs soy sauce

3 tbs cilantro

3 tbs green onion

4 cups fish stock

Cook udon noodles in salted water al dente, set aside. Sautee trumpet mushrooms in oil, add salt to facilitate the evaporation of excess moisture, set aside. Bring stock with pepper flakes to a simmer. Turn heat to low, add fish, noodles, mushrooms, and soy sauce. Ready to serve. Garnish with cilantro and green onion, serve with a crusty bread, I prefer buttered sourdough. I guess a Rogue ale would be appropriate.