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At rear is actually a boletus, with a sponge-like cap,
and brown slimy skin called a
Slippery Jack (Suillus
luteus). In front is the
Saffron Milk Cap (Lactarius deliciosus)
If you cut the stems with a knife, they then re-grow (good
mushrooming manners that I
learnt too late for these.)
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One day, deep in the Oberon pine
forests...
I found these mushrooms. I do have an
interest or two outside of food and
wine, (the pleasure of living in the
country is part of that) and sometimes
they combine with eating. This is a
confession of being a closet mycophile.
I really really like mushrooms, the
wonderful shapes, colours and sizes that
they grow in. Eating them was a pleasure
I discovered latter-day. As a kid, I'd
pick them for my parents. The idea that
this abundance was seasonally available
and free, and the surprise in seeing
them appear where days before there were
none is still magical. (And I like the
smell of them. However growing a
mushroom kit in the cupboard under the stairs taught me that
not everyone in the family liked that
fecund mustiness. Especially infiltrating
their hanging jackets.)
At left are the two varieties that are commonly available
in autumn in the forests around Oberon in NSW.
The
Oberon Visitors Centre has a free
identification sheet and display samples
at this time of the year, that will help
you make sure that you're not eating
things poisonous. If in doubt, throw it
out.
The extensive pine plantations in the
area were planted with seedlings from
Europe and came complete with spores of
these varieties. Apparently you'll find
family groups of European residents
gamboling in the woods at this time of
the year. I picked enough for a
substantial meal that we cooked and
served over polenta. Tasty.
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