Tag Archives: porcini

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Though it's quite cold, there is a nice bloom of Boletus edulis along the Mendonoma Coast. Many foragers have been at Salt Point State Park where it is legal to forage as long as you only take five pounds a day. Catherine Miller found some of the first king boletes of the season on November 9th.

Boletus edulis arrive by Catherine Miller

Rick and I had our first taste of the year this week, making a porcini omelet for breakfast yesterday. YUM!

David Arora says that, even with the cold weather (36 degrees at our house this morning), we should see more boletes, though not as many as we would get with more normal weather. He says the cold weather will keep them hard and free from bugs. I'll be looking for Queen boletes on our property soon.

Thanks to Catherine for allowing me to share her photo with you here.

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We're usually looking for Boleus edulis, porcini, in late October and November. But we did have a nice rain in September. That, combined with fog drip, has coaxed several Boletes to pop. Justin Rosenthal found the first ones on The Sea Ranch.

Early Boletus edulis by Justine Rosenthal (Large)

Justin said they were growing about 1/4 mile inland in tall grasses. She said they were hard to see.

Irma Brandt was encouraged to go check one of her spots this past week. Look what she found - two pristine, perfect Boletes.

Two pristine Boletus edulis by Irma Brandt

Several others have found a few too. I think it is going to take a couple of good rainstorms to convince more of these delicious edible mushrooms to appear.

Thanks to Justine and Irma for allowing me to share their photos with you here.

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Boletus edulis, also called King Boletes, Porcini or Cep, have responded to a good rain we received in April. They decided to pop up in all their glory. Justine Rosenthal found two big ones. They are deliciously edible.

Justine Rosenthal with a huge Boletus edulis by Janine Johnson

Justine was celebrating World Tai Chi day when she found this beauty. Janine Johnson photographed this happy mushroom forager.

If you are on the Coast, check your spots - more were found earlier this week. They normally fruit in the fall, after the first rains, usually in November and December. With climate change who knows what the new normal will be.

Thanks to Justine and Janine for allowing me to share this photo with you here.

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There has been a bloom of very large Boletus edulis, Porcini mushrooms. Jinx McCombs came across this huge one near Point Arena.
_I'm afraid we've come too late - a huge, over-the-hill Boletus edulis by Jinx McCombsjpg

Jinx's dog posed next to the big bolete, which Jinx said was over the hill. Jinx and her husband, Paul Nordstrand, did find a nice cache of boletes though.

Paul Nordstrand with his haul of Boletus edulis by Jinx McCombsPaul is cleaning and slicing his find. When I find a large amount like this, I dry them in a dehydrator. It's easy to reconstitute them in a dish of water or red wine.

We did not have a good mushroom season last year due to dry conditions. This year, thank goodness, rains have come early. May they continue! And the rain brings wonderful edible mushrooms for us, and other creatures of the forest, to enjoy.

Thanks to Jinx for allowing me to share her photos with you here.

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We've had enough rain for a Porcini, Boletus edulis, bloom. This choice, edible mushroom is such a treat to find. Paul Kozal hit a goldmine of Porcinis, over ten pounds of them.

Basketfull of Boletus edulis by Paul Kozal

And, this very morning Rick and I discovered this bloom of Coccora, Amanita calyptroderma.

Coccora by Jeanne Jackson

Coccoras should only be picked and eaten by the most experienced mushroom forage as they have a deadly look-a-like, the Destroying Angel. Since Rick refuses to eat a mushroom that could conceivably be mistaken for a deadly one - a wise decision - we leave these beauties alone and admire them growing in the forest.

Happy foraging! We have rain in our forecast for next week but for the weekend we are having a short heat wave.

Thanks to  Paul for allowing me to share his photo with you here. To see much more of Paul's photography, here is his website: http://www.paulkozal.com/