This Weather Is For The Mushrooms!

 I wasn't planning on Blogging today.. Until.....   Boletus Campestris made an appearance!   I found several in our back yard.  They were obviously fresh because I just went scouted the yard yesterday for Chanterelles. It has been drizzling ever since we got home and I thought: " This seems like the perfect Bolete conditions.   They like the rain, pop up fast, and will begin to decay if they are not harvested immediately.   So I dug out the Mushroom Basket and headed for the Neighbor's yard. 

The neighbor had just recently moved out.  And a New Neighbor is moving in Today!   What better way to introduce myself than over the topic of Mushrooms.  ( Everyone wants to talk about Mushrooms.... Right?) But first!  Let's see if there are any popping up in their front yard. 

Well,  I was blown away!   Mushrooms Galore!  And not only the Boletes!  There were LOTS of Small brown and white Mushrooms. ( not edible or readily identifiable)  But I was after the Red and Yellow ones.   I could not get a good picture of that first wave, because my Camera was completely out of juice! ( figures!)  But eventually, there were so many I had to make a second trip.  The Basket was completely overflowing!

I grabbed my fully charged camera and headed back over there.   I talked with the new neighbor briefly, just long enough to make them doubt their decision to move to a small town in Iowa. ( What?  Everyone thinks all mushrooms are Poisonous? Weird.) I didn't get the impression that I should not harvest the "poisonous" mushrooms from their yard, so I went back out front.  I again filled the Basket with another round of Field Boletes.  

Back home, Cheryl helped me clean and process them for the Dehydrator.  These guys usually dry up quick, but they are fully saturated with water from the rain.   It could take a little longer than planned.  As it is, they tend to get mushy if they are handled too much.  And the Dehydrator is completely full now, with several cookie sheets filled with additional mushrooms waiting for their turn. I'm hoping we can get them fully dried by tonight.  And perhaps we should make a plan to go out and look for the Penny Bun Boletes in the Coralville Dam Forest area in the near future. 

I love the Field Bolete.   Besides being cute and fun to find, they taste like creme cheese when you cook them fresh.  And if you dry them, they taste like an earthy, cheddar-y cheese.  We have never found this many,  even compared to last year. ( where we found a LOT over the Summer) Two full baskets full of just the Field Boletes is something to be very satisfied with.   I think we will have enough for Cheryl to make a Mushroom Torte now.  Who needs those stupid Morals? Chanterelles are next. ( Hopefully) and we definitely want to find some Lobsters, Wood ear, and Penny Buns along the way.   Now, it is time to take a page from the "Cat Play Book" and chill out in the dry cool apartment. ( Cool temps, but so humid it causes you to sweat continuously. )   Hope everyone is enjoying the great outdoors while you can.  And even when it rain, there is something out there to find, enjoy and appreciate.   Thanks for stopping in.