Monday 30 September 2013

Garnering



I am known in these parts
as a highly risk-averse person,
so when I spotted these magnificent specimens
I did not immediately think, 
'Yum, mushrooms on toast.'
In fact the aptly named Parasol mushrooms 
would have been quite safe to eat.


But later, I found some mushrooms in a field
looking so much like mushrooms in a supermarket
that emboldened by my survival of the last experiment
in 2010


I brought them home.
And ate them.


This little garning of crab apples
was insufficient for the purposes of preserving


but luckily I still have this jar from 2011
sitting on a shelf groaning under the weight 
of all the other unopened jars of
chutney, jam and marmalade.

I'll be alright for mincemeat too,
so if anyone sees me assembling the dried fruits
and sterilising jam jars,
please put out a gentle restraining hand.

15 comments:

  1. And how are you feeling now, Lucille? No hallucinations or minor stomach pains?

    I just don't understand why I don't have groaning shelves of jars. What does one have to *do* to deserve them?

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  2. I can still remember the time when my brother picked and ate mushrooms over 40 years ago. He's a country lad, can name clouds, stars, newts and leafless tress, so should have known better. He was VERY UNWELL. I have refused to eat a mushroom since!

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    Replies
    1. I can see that would have been very off-putting. I don't eat mussels for the same reason.

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  3. I've just rang for an ambulance, you'll be alright Lucille..........

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  4. You should eat your pickles and jams! (Says the woman with 2010 hedgerow jam in the cupboard!)

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  5. I can't vouch for those mushrooms over the hedge. Trust your instincts. You are needed in Blogland.

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  6. I wonder who has the oldest unopened preserve in the world. An Ancient Egyptian perhaps.

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  7. Thanks for the timely warning - I may rethink my chutney empire.

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  8. Lucille, your post's beautiful photos of mushrooms in the wild, and the earlier comments were fun for me to see. I do have a UK friend whose mushroom knowledge I would surely trust.

    I would never go a hunting for mushrooms on my own. Even though I know that safe, and fresh from the forest specimens must be absolutely delicious.

    xo

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  9. I've called a temporary halt to ratatouille production for the same reason . The freezer's bulging with the stuff .
    Glad your mushrooming had a happy ending !

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  10. That amount of crabapples was sufficient for a beautiful photo, though. Sometimes, as you know, that is enough of a harvest.

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  11. And then there is the lure of berries...huckleberries, salmon berries, juniper...the little ones made themselves sick on my June berries this year, they couldn't wait until they had ripened.

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  12. You are brave Lucille!

    I have an unopened jar of Medlar jelly, dating from 1998...

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