Recipe
Edible Amanitas: Vernicoccora
Sacramento is a haven for amanita mushrooms. Many are deadly. But not all. One, the coccora, is among the finest-tasting mushrooms in the world. But be very careful.
Mushrooms
Morel Sauce with Venison
It's morel season at last, and in celebration, I've revamped one of my favorite recipes for venison and morels. No fresh morels in your area yet? Use dried. They work fine in this recipe.
Foraging
Italian Marinated Mushrooms
Marinated mushrooms are a staple on any antipasti plate. They're not pickled so much as they are preserved. Here's how to do the technique the Italians call sott'olio.
Recipe
Irish Colcannon with Wild Greens
In honor of St. Patrick's Day, here is my take on an Irish classic: Colcannon, basically mashed potatoes with green things. In this case, the green thing is cow parsnip.
Recipe
Scandinavian Nettle Soup
Even though NorCal has not had a rough winter, I am longing for the green of spring. And this nettle soup was exactly what I needed right now.
Pasta, Risotto, Gnocchi
Nettle Pasta
It's nettle season here in Northern California, and as I am on a pasta jag lately, I thought I would make pasta dough with stinging nettles. Seemed like the right thing to do.
Mushrooms
Lies, Lust and a Golden Treasure
When a passerby asked recently if I'd found any chanterelles, I casually told him no, even though my pack was full of them. Hiding your secret spots is all part of living off the wild.
Recipe
Arrowhead or Wapato Pasta
Wapato, arrowhead, katniss, duck potato: Sagittaria is an aquatic tuber of American marshes said to be the equal of a potato. I have never found it. But a friend sent me some, so I got my first tantalizing taste.
Mushrooms
Of Trumpets, Hedgehogs and Yellowfeet
The winter mushrooms of California's North Coast are popping in earnest: Hedgehogs, black trumpets, yellowfoot chanterelles and candy caps!
Sweet Things
Pine Nut Ice Cream
Pine nuts from America's Great Basin are among the best in the world. Combine them with some desert wildflower honey I bought in Arizona and you have one spectacular ice cream.
Foraging
Eating Santa’s Shroom
Amanita muscaria can be a hallucinatory mushroom, a possible symbol of Santa and his flying reindeer. But it also can be eaten safely, if you do it right. So I decided to take a Christmas trip down the rabbit hole...
Recipe
Porcini Risotto
There's nothing quite like a porcini hunt. The mushrooms are huge, meaty and can go for $30 a pound or more, so finding them is like striking gold. And boy did we find them last weekend!
