Best Westcoast Foraging Guides

Best Foraging GuidesMy co-worker and fellow creative lunatic Carol recently asked me what I considered to be the best, most easily accessible books on Wescoast foraging. She’d been poking around the backyard, getting excited about harvesting some local spring plants to eat and wanted a guide that could: a) Give her a fundamental understanding of foraging – ie. when and where to pick what. b) Clearly identify what plants are edible and what to avoid. c) Inspire her to roam farther afield for new experiences. Read More

Chanterelle Mushroom Soup

ShroomSoup2There are people out there (they know who they are!) who cannot appreciate the complex and sublime flavours of fungus because of “texture issues”. Granted, mushrooms can sometimes be a bit challenging texture-wise (read: slimy, knobbly, bumpy, spongy, etc.) but to deny oneself these earthy delights is unthinkable! So, during the wild mushroom season I tend to make a lot of soup so that even my squeamish friends and family get a chance to taste the essence of autumn.

Golden chanterelles can be 50/50 when it comes to texture. If you go picking on a good day you’ll get the dry, crisp stuff that sautés and even grills well, but after a heavy rain those same ‘shrooms will be bloated and a bit spongy. A pureed soup solves all of those pesky texture issues without losing any of the chanterelle’s flavour. Read More

Golden Chanterelle Mushrooms

shroom1It’s autumn, there’s no doubt about it now. The skies have darkened to the gunmetal grey colour we all know so well. The mornings are too cold to roam the backyard in shorts… Back to my ratty jeans, I guess. I can see the steam of my morning coffee rising against the bitter chill with an almost audible hiss. The leaves play a staccato beat in the greenbelt as they fall, hitting every brittle branch on their way to the mushy floor. And the rain… oh, the rain completes the autumn ensemble by punishing the gutters with waves of smooth and freestyle jazz arrangements in the key of dank.

I couldn’t be happier. Read More