The Aborted Entoloma! The Shrimp Of The Woods!

There is a joke in that name somewhere.  But I will let you use your own imagination.  

Yesterday!  I found the Shrimp of the Woods!   (Aborted Entoloma)  A mushrooms what has been attacked by another mushroom and is turned into something that resembles neither the attacker or the victim.   There is much debate on who is doing the attacking.  But I will leave that to another mycologist.   ( Because my post is supposed to be a short one tonight...) Basically, I have been finding a lot of "Things" of the "Woods" lately.   ( Chicken of the woods,  Hen of the Woods,  Now Shrimp of the woods!)  

Having never found them before, I was shocked at how quickly I ID-ed them just from picking them up and looking them over.  I guess reading all of those books pays off in the long run. ( And all of those videos on You Tube!) I saw them while running in the evening and raced home as soon as I had an idea on what they were.   Imagine running 1.5 miles home with a bunch of mushrooms in your hands.  And then driving back to gather up more!   That was pretty much how it went down. 

While out foraging,  I also discovered a couple Fall Oysters and a nice gathering of Coral mushrooms.   ( Coral mushrooms are becoming one of my new favorites!) Before long, I had picked an entire basket full of them. 

I also found a single Blewit.   It was kind of old, but I wanted to bring it home for "Show and Tell".  

Shrimp of the Woods sounds like it should be something special.   I was excited to try it. ( since it was a new mushroom to me) but after reading a few reviews and watching a few people eat them,  I realized it would be a crap shoot.    Several folks simply did not like them... Either for texture or flavor. ( very mild flavor) Other people loved them and swore they had the texture and flavor of Shrimp.  I guess I would have to find out on my own. 

We cooked up a few this afternoon.  Dave and I were the Trial Tasters.  I think Dave hit the button dead on when he noted they tasted and had the texture of regular everyday Button Mushrooms you would buy in the store.  I pretty much agreed. It was certainly not a bad flavor or taste... But it was not the greatness that some of the folks had hinted towards. 

But we get to add another mushroom to our long list of trials.  And I currently am still alive, so I guess the ID part was a pass.  Given that they are similar to Lobster Mushrooms in creation. And looks! ( Except for the bright Orange being replaced with white.)  I think these are actually pretty easy to ID.  Pink on the inside and no gills are dead give-aways.  

Golden Scalycap mushrooms.

Thursday already!  The weekend approaches so quickly these days.  I guess that is a good thing.   The weather in Wisconsin has suddenly turned chilly.  With highs reaching only the low 60's.   And it dropped down to 43 this morning!  Pretty soon I will have to suit up with long sleeves to go to work at 5 AM.  I love the Fall. 

Hope everyone is having a great Week so far.  Tomorrow,  I travel to Indiana.   With a little luck, I will have new bloggin material to blog about.   Because blogging is fun!   And I miss having material and time to write.   Enjoy the awesome weather and Thanks for Stopping in.

The Grilling Of The Puffball!

 A quick post about our Mushroom Grilling experience yesterday.   I had read and heard that Puffballs are best when grilled just as if they were steak. I have never tried this method of cooking and as luck would have it... Dave Loves to Grill!  We have to hook these two up for some savory action! 

We sliced the puffballs into thin sections and seasoned them with butter and various spices.   We could not make up our minds, so we went with 4 variations.   Lawry's Season Salt, Steak seasoning, Everything Bagel seasoning, and some hot and spicy Asian mix.  ( or maybe Indian?)  

Any grilling experience would no be complete without a brewsky.   Dave had his maple porter in the fridge just begging to be sampled.  

The grilling did not take long.   And I thought the mushroom behaved rather nicely, given it was rather large and filling the rack.  Dave thought he had burned it a little, but when we finally sampled it,  You could not tell. 

A toast to success!  The mushroom tasted like a very tender slab of meat.   Some of the seasonings fared better than others, but for the most part, I think it turned out pretty good!

The only down side is Giant Puffball is like Pickled Herring:   Sample it once... it is awesome.   Sample it a second time and it loses its novelty.   And so it was with the puffball.   

The last time I brought one home, I was the only one eating it and it took almost an entire week for me to finish half! ( Giant Puffballs are GIANT after all...)   And I think I may have said that I had no need to ever bring another one home ever again.  ( I might have said that...)  But after several years, it was good to revisit it once again.   And to share the experience with a friend. So hurray! 

I am now trying to dry the remaining puffballs in the dehydrator.   I don't know what to expect, but I figure if they do dry up nice enough, we can add them to soups and other mixes later on during the winter.  Assuming we wont find any winter mushrooms in the Wisconsin snow.  

Hope everyone is having a grand week so far.   Tomorrow is Hump day already!  The week can certainly slip by quickly.   Try not to miss too much of it as it passes by.   Thanks for stopping in.

A Visit To The Quad Cities....

Game Face Allens

For some Race action!   Yes.. Cheryl ran the Quad Cities Half Marathon this last weekend.   And I was invited to attend.   It was kind of a last minute decision, but we somehow pulled it off and managed to have a decent time.  Who would have ever thought it? 

Ah.. yes... the 2019 race..

You may remember previous years... Where either the rain or the heat or some other thing caused Cheryl to lose focus and not run her best.  Usually it is the heat, as the summer is never really done with Iowa at this time of year.   But this year was Different!

25 Years!

First,  it was the 25th anniversary for the race.   Not that that matters much to the runners.   But it does make for a special commemorative medal.

New Bridge!  New Route!

Second,  the Bridge that they used to cross the Mississippi  was GONE!  Gone forever!  And a new one was established a couple hundred yards to the north of it.   As a result,   the race directors were forced to re-map the entire race!  Meaning all of the usual mile stones were switched up!  Causing the spectators (ME!)  several timing issues. 

And lastly,  there was the weather.   The weather was unseasonably cool for Iowa this year.   I would say it was pleasant for runners.  Slightly uncomfortable for scantly-clad spectators.  Records were broken.  Champions were unseated.   It was a memorable race for many people this year.  And no one got lost during the race....

Cheryl and I made the Expo on Saturday.   We were there at the open and I spent a few moments  with several kids, drawing on the sidewalk with chalk again this year.   They did not have the chalk out for the kids like last year, but they did have bouncy tents.  

Cheryl and I linked up and did a tour around the expo.  Not much to really do there since we have seen it all before.  We snapped a few photos and went out find our hotel.  The start was scheduled at 7 AM.

We arrived early as always to secure a good parking spot. Cheryl followed me with the Bean Subie and we managed to find and park next to each other.    Then... it was simply a wait for the big start gun to go BOOM! 

  With the race route changed,  I hustled over to find Cheryl at the Half way point.  However, I quickly realized that the half way point was no longer half way. Instead it was around mile three!   I then rushed over the what Used to be  Mile 9.  Only to find that Cheryl was just coming into it.   I cheered her on and took her pic as she ran by.

Then on to the finish.   I had no other spectator points planned out, so I figured I best head for the end.  And besides,  Cheryl was moving fast!

At the finish,  Cheryl raced down the off ramp and down towards the finish line.  It was not an overall PR for the half marathon, but it was a PR for the Quad Cities!  And not a bad time overall.  Cheryl was very happy. 

After a couple hotdogs and beers,  we finally got to the Half Marathon awards.  Cheryl won first in her age group again.   I think she was happier about this award than she ever has been over any other Quad Cites award from the past. ( Is that sentence too complicated?  In my mind, it makes sense.. So I will leave it.)  Overall, it was a good day.

As the time slipped by, we left the after party and headed to Muscatine for some Ice Cream Therapy and some Zen time by the River.   We climbed up onto "The Clammer" and finished out the visit with a good long talk and foot massage.  (I almost spelled "massage"  with an "E"  What kind of message would your feet give you if they wanted a Massage?)  The wind was brisk, the air was cool and the sun was warm.  A Very Rare pleasant day in Iowa. 

As with all things that bring happiness,  their time is fleeting.  And every wonderful moment must end eventually.  No matter how long we wish for them to last.   I headed back to Wisconsin and Cheryl went her own way back to Wellman.  To a life of a lonely cat lady who writes for the local newspaper. 

And me... Back to a nameless, faceless warehouse worker in Kenosha Wisconsin.  Before she left, I helped set her up with a week's supply of cat food.  So... The cats should be good for a while.  I do so miss those cats.

And now the separation is back.  But the distance has been shortened ever so slightly.  Moments in time to treasure and remember for years to come.  In true Stoic Philosophy:  The pain and struggle make the pleasant moments in life filled with more Joy and Happiness.  I find this to be true.  The smallest of candles shine brightest in the darkest of rooms.  So take note of the little things.

I hope everyone had a wonderful weekend this weekend.  I certainly did.  Even though I was prepared for a far different scenario.  Thankfully,  things worked out better than I could have hoped and I think Cheryl feels the same way.  Good weather; a fun, new race route; an excellent performance, and good company all made for a wonderful time in the Quad Cites.  And hopefully, the memories will last a little longer with the creation of this blog post.    Thanks for stopping and joining in. 

Chickens, Bats and Puffballs! Oh My!

After the Hen of the Woods discovery,  I simply have not been able to stay out of the woods.   I say I'm going for a run after work, but always end up running through the trails behind the track and exploring for Mushrooms.   Yesterday...  I went out again,   

I really REALLY wanted to find the Hen of the Woods. ( maitake or Grifola frondosa)   But ended up running around in circles and finding a bunch of old Turkey tail.  I was about to give up when I spotted this cute little Hoary bat near the base of a tree.   I simply had to pet him. 

As previously mentioned in this blog... I LOVE bats.   I used to build them bat houses and rescue them from terrified neighbors.  ( I don't know what all the fuss is about,  I would love to have bats in my house. )  They are super cute and eat bugs the bite me.   So they are a friend and ally in my book.

I eventually left him alone as evening approached.   I would have loved to bring him home with me, but I currently am a guest in someone else's house... so  Kind of a bad Idea.   I did manage to get his picture though, so that was a win for the blog. 

A few steps away from that area, I found some more Chickens!  I though they would be done, as we have not had any rain for several days.  But there they were!  Large and fresh!  I picked all that I could and spread around a few of the crumbs for next year.  With a little luck, there will be even more in the future. As it stands though, it looks like the Chicken of the Woods is firmly established in this forest already.  Still, a little help is always a welcome thing, right? 

I still wanted to find some hens so I headed to my next favorite mushroom spot and jumped into the woods.  Only to find a BUNCH of puffballs.    I might have passed on these guys, but they all seemed to be at the perfect eating size.. I simply could not pass them up.  There were /are so many puff balls in this forest I had to leave a bunch. Even with them being small, I already had more than I could carry.   I brought them home along with the chickens

This evening I enjoyed some lettuce with Maitake, Chicken of the woods, and cubed up Puff Ball over the top. The mushrooms were sautéed up in some bacon grease until softened.   Add some cheese, sunflower and pumpkin seeds and a couple tomatoes and I had  the perfect veggy dinner. ( with bacon grease!... So don't label me a vegan or anything....) Mushrooms are the perfect substitute for meat... but also go with any meat dish. Personally, I think they should be in everything!  But that is just me.   Yes!  Even chocolate!  Which I have done with Shitakes... It was not bad.  (Sorry Sara.  No pictures!)

Heading to Davenport tomorrow.   To see Cheryl.  I don't know what to expect, but I'm sure it will be an adventure worth blogging about.   We shall see. 

Hope everyone is ready for the Weekend!  Have a great night and thanks for stopping in.