Mushrooming...in the front yard?

Mushroom hunting in our front yard - yes, in Wichita, Kansas!

Caution:  don't try this at home unless you are absolutely sure you know what you're doing!

While enjoying a day off from culinary school in Colorado a few years ago, Chris went hiking and came across mushrooms.  A few days earlier, the restaurant he worked for received a shipment of expensive Bolete mushrooms, also known as Porcini.  These fungi he happened upon looked just like the ones received by the kitchen.  He harvested the mushrooms, put them in his pack and went home to identify them, knowing if he ate the wrong type of mushroom it could be a big mistake.  After all, mushrooms can be poisonous, but they can also be a delicacy. 

After arriving home, his research indicated that these mushrooms were edible.  He cooked them up, enjoyed them and is still living to tell the story.

On Sunday I found my precious husband sitting in the middle of the grass in the front yard, with a book on one knee and a mushroom in his hand.  Unfortunately, all of the mushrooms in our yard are poisonous.  It's fun to know that the possible sources of food we find are endless!  Prior to Sunday, front yard mushrooms were not a local food I considered.

While our mushrooms were not safe to eat, we plan to hike in Colorado this summer and Chris is taking his mushroom book along.  Good thing our cabin has a kitchen, I might be eating some local (to the area I'm vising) mushrooms.  Here's to accurate identification of mushrooms, I am not interested in gastrointestinal discomfort or death from any mushroom meal!

Local Foods List Update:  I emailed the most recent updates to the local food producers list out last week.  If you did not receive the list, and would like to receive it and future updates, please email me at pswedel@yahoo.com.