Meeting April 7

The next meeting will be on Monday, April 7^th in Room 101 at the Casa Del Prado in Balboa Park.  Our speaker will be Elio Schaechter.

 

Pre-Meeting Dinner

Our usual custom of treating the speaker to dinner will be observed.  We will meet at 5 pm, at a location  to be determined.  Watch for an email with the location.

A Message From the President

It never ceases to amaze me to witness the energy that mushrooms can generate. A love of the natural world has a way of bringing people together to do extraordinary things. This years' Mushroom Fair was proof of that.

No matter what our back grounds are, our scholastic accolades, points of origin or age our aim is basically the same to enlighten the unenlightened to the amazing world of mushrooms.

The Mushroom Fair is one of those very unique points in time where one can stand back and observe the visitors' reactions, body language and comments to an exhibit that is often surprisingly unfamiliar to them. The reactions can be quite variable, from utter amazement, to (hands in their pockets) appearing a little uncomfortable about the whole idea, to stories of childhood memories of mushroom gathering with a grandparent.

Thanks to all that participated in this years' Magnificent Mushroom Menagerie.

It truly was a pleasure working with you all.

 

Peace, Paul

 

Thanks to Volunteers

I have still not seen the list of all of the volunteers who helped with the fair, so I will just broadcast the thanks and let them land where they are deserved.  You helpers know who you are.

For a small club, we do a big fair.  We could not do it without all of you who help in so many ways.  Thanks!

Montana Morel Hunt?

[In case you were wondering where to go on your vacation.]

Forest officials consider commercial mushroom harvest

HAMILTON, Montana (AP) - The Forest Service is evaluating opportunities for the commercial harvest of wild mushrooms, on the Bitterroot National Forest in southwestern Montana.

There's a good chance lands burned by wildfires last summer will have abundant mushrooms this spring.

Commercial harvesting would require permits. The Forest Service is considering fees ranging from $20 for a 7-day permit, to $100 for a season permit.

Officials say that in looking ahead to a possible commercial harvest, they must consider social effects and what the forest's natural resources can withstand. Given the potential profit in gathering wild mushrooms, commercial seasons can bring waves of people. On some forests, there have been conflicts over harvest territory and concerns about environmental harm from a lot of camping.

Bitterroot National Forest officials expect to issue a decision by the end of March.

 

Help Still Wanted

No takers yet  for the job of newsletter editor.  You could be the hero who steps in to take over!

There has been some positive response to the idea of going paperless.  That would simplify the job considerably.  We would need to arrange for someone to print and mail three or four copies to our non-electronic members.

 

Coming Events

May Potluck

Monday, May 5 (Hey, Cinco de Mayo!).  This is another chance to show us all what you can do in the kitchen.  Location to be determined, most likely it will be at Jean Leighton’s in Point Loma. Firecrackers and tequila optional.

 

Morel Foray(s)?

In case you do not want to go all the way to Montana, we can hunt morels closer to home.

In some prior years, we have held a morel foray in the Barton Flats area of the Santa Ana mountains.  Some years we have done a joint foray with LAMS, and other years we have done an SDMS trip the week after the LAMS trip. 

This event has always been a fun weekend, regardless of how many morels we find, but it is obviously much better in a good year.  This is likely to be a good year.

There has been some interest. We need more volunteers to assist in organizing.

We need to get started, as the best time to go is in early May.

Fair Species List

Agaricus bernardii

Agaricus bitorquis

Agaricus californicus

Agaricus hondensis  *

Agaricus silvicola  *

Agaricus xanthodermus  *

Agrocybe sp.

Agrocybe pediades

Amanita sp.

Amanita magniverrucata  *

Amanita ocreata

Amanita pantherina  *

Amanita rubescens (novinupta)  *

Amanita velosa  *

Annulohypoxylon thouarsianum

Armillaria mellea

Astraeus sp.

Astraeus hygrometricus

Boletus chrysenteron

Boletus dryophilus

Boletus flaviporus

Boletus truncatus

Calvatia sp.

Cantharellus cibarius

Clavariadelphus pistillaris  *

Clitocybe fragrans  *

Clitocybe sp. (2)

Collybia sp. (2)

Cortinarius sp. (8)

Cortinarius fulmineus  *

Cortinarius glaucopus

Cortinarius trivialis  *

Crepidotus mollis

Cryptoporus volvatus

Entoloma ferruginans  *

Ganoderma lucidum

Ganoderma sp.

Gymnopilus sapineus

Hebeloma sp.

Hebeloma crustuliniforme  *

Helvella compressa  *

Helvella lacunosa

Hericium erinaceus

Hericium ramosum  *

Hygrophorus ponderatus  *

Hygrophorus roseibrunneus

Hypomyces chrysospermum

Inocybe fastigiata  *

Inocybe geophylla  *

Laccaria amethystina

Laccaria amethysteo-occidentalis

Laccaria bicolor  *

Lactarius alnicola

Lactarius argillaceifolius  *

Lactarius rufulus  *

Lactarius xanthogalactus  *

Lepiota sp.

Lepiota rachodes

Lepista (Clitocybe) nuda  *

Leucopaxillus amarus  *

Lycoperdon perlatum  *

Lycoperdon sp.

Marasmius plicatulus  *

Melanoleuca sp.

Morchella esculenta

Omphalina sp.

Omphalotus olivascens

Peziza sylvestris  *

Phaeolus schweinitzii

Phellinus igniarius

Pleurotus ostreatus

Pluteus cervinus  *

Psathyrella longipes  *

Psathyrella uliginicola  *

Psilocybe sp.

Ramaria sp.

Rhizopogon rubrotincta

Russula brevipes  *

Russula cremoricolor  *

Russula maculata  *

Russula sp.

Schizophyllum commune

Stereum ostrea

Stropharia sp.

Suillus pungens

Trametes versicolor

Tremella foliacea

Tremella mesenterica

Tricholoma fracticum  *

Tricholoma flavovirens

Tricholoma pessundatum  *

Tricholoma portentosum  *

Volvariella speciosa  *

 

[Note: this includes a few non-local species.  Local species in good condition with information available about the collection location have been deposited in the herbarium at the Natural History Museum.  These are marked with an *.]

 

New Mushroom Guide

University of Iowa Press releases revised mid-continental mushroom guide

From the University of Iowa News Services Office

The completely revised second edition of "Mushrooms and Other Fungi of the Midcontinental United States" by Donald Huffman, Lois Tiffany, George Knaphus and Rosanne Healy will become available from the University of Iowa Press on March 15, 2008.

This new edition -- part of the UI Press Bur Oak Guides series -- provides all the information necessary to identify mushrooms in the field in the mid-continental region of Iowa, Illinois, Nebraska, Missouri, Minnesota, South Dakota and Wisconsin, which encompass the tallgrass prairies and the western parts of the eastern deciduous forests.

The authors have updated scientific names, added photos where there were none and replaced some photos with better ones, improved the keys, added some species and deleted others, added a section on truffles and annotated the bibliography. There were originally 224 species in the guide, and now there are 248. Some of the new photos -- 125 in all -- serve as a second photo for a species, where it is helpful to show details that cannot be viewed in a single photo.

The authors describe each species' cap, gills, stalk and annulus, and the season when it is most likely to be seen, as well as characteristics including edibility and toxicity. In their detailed introduction they discuss the economic and environmental aspects of fungi, basic mushroom biology, nomenclature, edibility and toxicity, and habitats and time of fruiting.

Huffman, emeritus professor of biology at Central College in Pella, Iowa, has studied fungi in the United States and China since 1957, and more recently in Northern Europe and China. Tiffany is emeritus distinguished professor of botany at Iowa State University; she has studied fungi in the U.S. since 1952. Knaphus was a professor of botany and plant pathology at Iowa State University at the time of his death in 2000. Healy is a mycologist working on grant-funded research projects; she has studied fungi in Iowa since 1996.

 

[See www.uipress.uiowa.edu for more information.]

What’s Cooking?

Fungi as Food

By Dave Grubb

 

All of you food-lovers should know about a great resource on the web called Epicurious.com.  It was the source for this months recipe, which also inspired a little introduction to Madeira and Mushrooms.

 

Madeira and Mushrooms

Madeira is a fortified wine like the better-known sherry and port, but made in a very unusual way.  It is exposed to two things which would ruin most wine, heat and oxidation.  The process turns what would be a not-so-good table wine into a very tasty wine, good for sipping, but even better in cooking.

True Madeira is made on the Portuguese tropical island of Madeira.  It is made in four styles, from dry to very sweet.  In colonial times, Madeira was very popular in America.

Originally, Madeira got its unusual character because it was shipped across the Atlantic in wooden barrels.  The long, hot trip exposed the wine to heat and oxidation.  Instead of ruining the wine, the trip made it better.  The results were so good that the full barrels were sometimes sent back and forth twice to increase the effects.

One side effect of the process is that Madeira keeps extremely well.  You do not need to use up a bottle right away, it will keep fine for over a year after opening.

The flavor of a dry or semi-sweet Madeira goes very well with mushrooms.  I use it to rehydrate dried mushrooms, and to deglaze the pan when I sauté mushrooms.

Recently, I wanted a quick sauce to serve over fried polenta.  I sautéed a package of Maitake, chopped small, with a few large shallots, chopped.  When the shallots started to brown, I poured in a big splash of Rainwater Madeira and simmered until the mixture was thick enough to use as a sauce.  It was wonderful.

The next day, I repeated the same recipe, but at the end I added a big splash of heavy cream, and simmered for a few more minutes.  Even better!

Here is a slightly more elaborate version of a Mushroom-Madeira sauce.

 

Blade Steaks with Mushroom-Madeira sauce

Lillian Chou, Gourmet, March 08

An almost mystical combination beloved in France, mushrooms and fortified wines like Madeira elevate everything they touch. The results are exceptionally fine when you put their magic to work on great-tasting (and inexpensive) blade steaks.

Servings: Makes 4 servings

Ingredients

1 1/2 pound top blade beef chuck steaks (1/2 to 1 inch thick)

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 shallot, chopped

8 ounces sliced fresh mushrooms

1/2 cup Madeira

3/4 cup water

1 teaspoon cornstarch mixed with
1 tablespoon water

Preparation: Pat steaks dry and cut 3 shallow slits across center cartilage in each steak (to prevent curling), then sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper (total).

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a 12-inch heavy skillet over medium-high heat until it shimmers, then sauté steaks, turning once, 5 to 9 minutes total for medium-rare. Transfer to a plate and keep warm, covered.

Add shallot and remaining tablespoon oil to skillet and sauté over medium-high heat 30 seconds. Add mushrooms and sauté until golden, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in Madeira, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper and briskly simmer 2 minutes. Stir in water and any meat juices from plate and boil 2 minutes. Stir cornstarch mixture, then stir into mushrooms and simmer until thickened, about 1 minute. Season sauce with salt and spoon over steaks.

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SDMS Information