Monday, April 26, 2010

More Mushrooms

This is what the look like after they are fried and are on the way to the freezer. This is what dad brought home yesterday. They are in the sink for the third washing.


You have to cut them in half and wash them very carefully. Sometimes there are "bugs" in them. Once a LONG time ago mom found a thingy called something like this... saladmander... in one.


After they are all cut and cleaned you have to drain them and let them dry off a bit. Then mom puts them in a bag with flour and floofs them around. She frys them in 1/3 crisco shortening, 1/3 olive oil, and 1/3 margarine. She uses a 12" square skillet that she has a "bacon" weight for. That presses them down so they lay flat and fry nice. It takes her forever to fry them all.


Next we let them cool and eat them on bread. YUMMMMMM!!! If there are enough left... she puts those in the freezer until they are totally frozen and then puts them into freezer bags. We save one bag to have at Thanksgiving. If there are 2 bags frozen... we have them for Christmas... and in a GOOOOOOOD year we MIGHT just have one for Valentine's dinner.


There are a ton of "OLD CATS TAILS" about where and when and how to find mushrooms. I know for a fact that they are very much hard to see in the woods. One thingy that is NOT an old Cats Tail... If there is a lot of SNOW there will be More mushrooms in the following spring.

This year it has been soooooo dry here in April that they are not as big as usual. And they are pretty dry.

Five years ago dad found sooooo many that mom threaded them on sewing thread (with a needle) and hung them to DRY. That took about 5 days. Mom says they felt like chamois and weighed next to nothing. She kept them in jars and would put them in soups and stews and roasts with gravy.
There is a place called Moonlight Mushrooms, near Butler, PA, that is actually getting some to produce for them in the mines. About 12 years ago, mom stopped there and asked about them. They were selling for $250.00 a dried pound. Wonder how much they are now???
Someone asked if you can get sick from eating too many. YES... beclaws they are soooo rich and are also FRIED. SOOOO we never ever eat as many as we would like to.
They can only be found in the wild for a couple of weeks. There are several varieties. the furst up are what we call the "little gray ones". Next you find the Brown ones. And the last are the BIGGEST ones and we call them the "White Ones". Sometimes they will be as tall as 8 or 9 inches. One of those... makes a Full Sandwich.

21 comments:

3 doxies said...

Does you haves hallucinations afters eating those? Hehheheehe!
This is very interesting, I didn'ts know any of ths stuff. Of course, Mum doesn't Really cook anyway.
Puddles

Anonymous said...

Whoa! You are making my MOM drooly and I hardly ever see her drool! She says mushrooms are one of her most favoritest things ever. And the thought of a mushroom sandwich is just about sending her over the moon!

Wiggles & Wags,
Mayzie

houndstooth said...

You sure know a lot about mushrooms, Frankie! Mom says she's never liked mushrooms, but you're making her a little curious about trying them again. I hope you have enough to last you for a long time!

Bunny

♥♥ The OP Pack ♥♥ said...

Wow, that is a lot of work, but they must be really tasty. Mom loves mushrooms too. Maybe we will stop over for Thanksgiving:)

Woos - Phantom, Thunder, and Ciara

Remington said...

I have never had one of those -- look really good though!

The Oceanside Animals said...

Mmmm, deep fried anything ...

Rambo said...

That was very interesting. We have mushrooms growing in our grass sometimes. Should I tell G-Mom to cook them?? Usually she just throws them away.

woof,
Rambo

Mack and Mia said...

Ummmmm....one word....

NOMMY!

Wags and Woofs,
Mack and Mia

NAK and The Residents of The Khottage Now With KhattleDog! said...

She's having flashbakhks from the yummiii ones Summiii's mummi sent -

We know we mentioned them already but great things have to be retold!

Thanks fur sharing all the tasty mor(s)els!

Hugz&Khysses,
Khyra

Dog Foster Mom said...

Wow that is a lot of mushrooms. If you go with your dad to hunt for them, do you eat them or do you just tell him you found some and wait until your mom fries them first?

kissa-bull said...

oh wowie mommish has never had a real life one and she ish also drooling tee hee
welcome to our world human!!!!
well frankie we are furry glad that you shared this wiff us we tried to takes a pikshure of mommish drollin put our paws are not cooperating wiff ush. darn it woulda been a good blackmail photo for when we want a burger
teehee

pibble wiggles
the pittie pack

Ruby and Penny said...

Hi Frankie
Those mushrooms look and sound pretty tasty.
Mom loves wild mushrooms. Her dad used to pick them in the fall.
Love Ruby & Penny

Anonymous said...

Thank you for your shroom dissertation, Frankie. All good information we were wondering about.
I came by for some extra Mighty Dachshund Vibes :) Thank you!
Twinkie

RILEY AND STAR MY MALTESEKIDS said...

Hi Franky,

Now your cook'n, those look good!

Riley and Star.

Smushie Ranch said...

Fried mushrooms? Oh my goodness. Do you get to eat them?

Stella, Gunther and Betty

Sandra said...

Wow Frankie you are so knowledge. Your Mom is lucky to have you around. We are always learning something new from you. Great job!

Flash, Alven and Dottie.

BRUTUS said...

How cool! Mom says that Moonlight Mushrooms used to come and pick up all the used bedding from the stables where she kept her horse! It was the best fertilizer I guess!

Snorts-
Brutus the Frenchie

Remi said...

Shrooms! They look pretty tasty after the frying. In the sink, not so much. They kindof look like that snail thing I wanted to eat. I'm sure they taste much better!

Lorenza said...

Hi, Frankie!
A mushroom sandwich sounds delicious!
I will tell my grandma about it!
Kisses and hugs
Lorenza

The Adventures of the LLB Gang said...

Nommy...Mama says a little horseradish sauce and she would probably eat WAY too many!! Thanks so much for sharing this with us!!!
Smileys!
Dory

Kari in Alaska said...

you guys are so lucky to be near so many good mushrooms!