Sunday, May 10, 2009

Mama Morels


I had never heard of morels until I moved to Iowa. For those of you who don't know what they are, they're wild mushrooms and they're really, really yummy. I ate them at Casa Gonzales (i.e., the Gonzales' home), breaded and fried. Very, very yummy.
So when a friend here in West Virginia said, "Hey, I have morels growing near my house. Wanna come morel hunting?" I jumped at the chance. I'd eaten morels, but I'd never foraged for my own. We drove to the spot and started looking around for morels. We were under some pine trees, mostly. Remembering the morels I'd eaten in Iowa, which were maybe an inch long at the most and maybe 1/4 inch in diameter, I asked my friend if we needed to move the pine needles to see them. She looked at me a little strangely.
Then I found one-- only it was LOTS bigger than the morels I remember in Iowa. The pictures are an attempt to give a sense of scale. GINORMOUS morels!! I found one all on my own and three more with the help of my friend's husband's eyes.

I'm having fried morels and leeks over spaghetti tomorrow for dinner. Anybody wanna come over?

8 comments:

Kelly said...

Sounds delicious! Wish I could join you.

(Can't resist this one-sorry)

Glad you have such great morals...

literaqueen said...

Just so you know, you're not the first person to play with that pun . . .

C'mon, I'm only three and a half hours' drive away. What's a little drive over the mountains? You could even stay overnight.

Courtnie said...

That's really cool. I'd love to go morale hunting!

Tracy P. said...

YEAH!!!!

Fletch said...

Ugh, they look kinda gross to me. (And I'm usually the first one to try something wierd because beggars can't be choosers.)

literaqueen said...

Ya gotta get past the looks, Jenn. They are so, so yummy to eat. Given your food issues, though, it's wise to be cautious.

sally7kids said...

wow, another new food treat. if only you weren't EAST of the Mississippi...maybe i could. i love fried mushrooms. but, then i love any kind of mushroom.

literaqueen said...

Do morels grow in Idaho, Sally?