Date: 1 Aug 2000
   From: Barbara Marigold Dolloff
Subject: Report from Rociada
I have been feasting on good edibles for about a month now. I live at 7500 ft and we have had quite regular rain during June and July. The first treats were Agaricus campestris which came up through the hardpacked dirt of the driveway and in the coral. Then Agaricus arvensis in the grass, delicious raw in salads because it's so crisp. Soon after that I found several large lilac Lepista nuda (Clitocybe nuda) which I dry-sautéed à la Arora. Personally I think they are more fun to find than to eat, but not bad. A big surprise was a Calvatia booniana about the size of a softball in a wet shady pasture, my first ever. Of course there have been plenty of Bovista plumbea which are my last choice for the kitchen because they are "boring".

During the rains of late June I did find several varieties of Amanita. One posible edible was a young gray capped Amanita vaginata, but I held off for the experts. Early in July there was a rash of young dense tan-yellow boletes, not Suillus. They were quite tasty but I had to get them at 6:30 AM before all the critters came out to gather them.

Last weekend things dried up a bit here, so I visited my friend who lives up the road at 8500 ft. She took me to a dry streambed on her property, and I found the best variety of mushrooms of the season. One large whitish Ramaria was firm and fresh. It's one of my favorites because it has a texture like crabmeat. A lovely Lactarius deliciosus was sautéed in olive oil, and the best treat of the day was several large fresh Coprinus comatus (shaggy manes) which I dipped in egg and gently sautéed in olive oil in the wok.

That same day I found four varieties of boletes including some medium Boletus edulis, and some Suillus varieties. I found a few small bright orange Cantharellus cibarius, some Pleurotus ostreatus which were grayish growing on a log, tasty fried up that day. The woods were full of lots of inedibles, too, some of which were Gomphus floccosus, Amanita muscaria, and a variety of colors of very peppery Russula. I keep looking for the Russula xerampelina which is supposed to be delicious but no luck yet.

Yesterday on my drive over the mountain I pulled off the road above Holman hill. It had poured the night before, and the woods were dripping wet. There was nothing on the ground and I was about to leave when I spotted huge clumps of Auricularia auricula (wood ear) on a stump. After 15 minutes I had filled my basket with them. That evening I steamed them up with guacamole spices and served them at a cocktail party with toothpicks. They were a big hit.

Today I'm going to check out another area nearby and I'll be going out foraging again on Saturday and Sunday morning. If anyone would like to join me please call me. I don't always open my email every day.

1 Aug 2000 - http://www.swcp.com/mycowest/fieldtrp/fr000801.htm .