Rainy and cool in the Sangre de Cristo mountains for the past 2 weeks. Early foraging today between 10,200 and 10,800 feet yielded these few pounds of porcini, chanterelles, and hawk wings. If warmer weather comes it should be a terrific season. The porcini were pristine.
I keep saying that when I retire, I’m going to learn mushrooms! While Grouse hunting last Fall, I came across some crazy orange ones and looked them up later that are “Chicken of the woods”. I will surely be stopping by there again this year to harvest some. The flourescent orange colors really scared me off.
Kept these few after giving some away. The boletes are perfect showing no worms or decay and it’s obvious most have erupted in the past day as evidenced by the dirt on top. Lots of pressure by many foragers. Didn’t find a single chanterelle today. Hawk wings were abundant. I have never seen that number before. My foraging friend picked a huge sack full to the point where he couldn’t carry anymore. Dries them like boletes and uses in soups, stews and scrambled eggs.
Still seems early in the season, possibly due to cooler temps (it was 47 degrees in that region at 8am). Very damp up high.
Boletes are absolutely delicious. Sauteed with a little oil and garlic. OMG! I would try to find a local mushrooming group and go with them - I see them in my local reservation on their excursions when I walk the dog with by brown bag and knife hoping to find boletes, OR find a good Russian friend, as a lot of Russians - who grew up there or passed down the knowledge - know how to pick mushrooms.
A year or two ago some Russian immigrants from Sacramento poisoned themselfs as one of the local poisonous varieties of mushrooms looks very similar a safe variety from their home region. Look up a local mycological society and take a class from them.
Very pretty. Good work.
Do you saute those hawk wings like the boletes? In butter and garlic? And, will you slice and dry them for the future?
There are more hawk wings here than I’ve ever seen before. Literally more than you can pack out.
The hawk wings are just great in a cream sauce with long pasta, in fact my son and I like them more than porchini’s in that dish. Butter, garlic shrooms, pasta over a bed of arugula. Saute first.