Risotto has to be one of the nicest ways to use the mixed bag of fungi that so often comes back from a foray. The warm, earthy flavours of most wild mushrooms lend themselves really well to the generous unctiousness of a well made sofritto.
This is the prettiest and most fragrant of all hedgerow plants, its creamy yellow clouds of tiny flowers (I call them ditch-floss) spreading honey and almond summery scents about the countryside…
Shaggy ink caps can usually be found growing in the same place year after year – often in urban environments. As with all ink caps, spore dispersal is by means of deliquesing whereby the entire cap liquifies from the bottom up, often leaving only the stipe and a disc of cap
Giant puffballs are a joy to stumble upon. Actively hunting for them can be a waste of time as they are eccentric in when and where they grow. Smaller types of puffballs turn up on most forays.
It can feel like finding the mythical pot of gold at the end of a rainbow when you come across a cluster of these beautiful mushrooms on a shady woodland floor.