The Accidental Mushroom Hunter

I do LOVE morel mushrooms!  

I am not a mushroom hunter though...especially because any time I am in the woods, I have Winston with me on his leash.  Winston and I have different opinions on what to "look at" while out walking.  I'd like to looks for mushrooms and he'd like to dig for chipmunks.  He ALWAYS wants to look for chipmunks.  Sometimes our two desires cross.  When that happens, I am an accidental mushroom hunter.  :)

I was lucky enough to find the "white" morels above.  After they soaked in cold water, I cut them up and sauteed them in butter.  Mmm!  My husband and I savored every bite!  

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April is the time of year when Winston and I seem to share the woods with many other people.  They never seem to be on the trails, and if they have anything in their hands, they try to play it off like they haven't found a thing.  I know better!  The first weekend of April this year I saw a man out and asked if it wasn't a bit early to be looking.  Turns out he is a fungi professor here at IU!  I'm pretty sure I was in one of his classes another life time ago too.  He said it was a bit early, but here's the general rule for hunting mushrooms..."A fool goes out on April 1st.  Pay the tax man and then go looking and by the end of the month, when the big mushroom festival in Mansfield happens, hunting time is over." 

I've never been to a mushroom festival, but it seems like I'll be able to remember this general rule of thumb.  

I found this big, brown morel a few days after my first stash.  I big guy like this makes a nice appetizer all by himself.

Surprisingly enough, the woods are back to being a pretty quiet place to hike once more.  Winston is happy...unlike the morels, the chipmunks haven't gone away.