St Georges Mushroom –Calocybe Gambosa
They can often be found on roadsides, hedgerows & along foot paths. The cap measures 5-10 cm, has a velvety texture with dimples. The cap, stem and flesh can be from white to creamy buff coloured. The gills are white and crowded, the flesh is thick and soft and has a mealy smell. The spore print is white to pinkish white. The stubby stem is bulky at the base.
- 3 eggs
- 120g St George’s Mushroom, sliced
- 3 asparagus spears
- 30g butter
- 1 tbsp Parmesan cheese
- 1 tbsp water
- 1 tbsp double cream salt and black pepper to taste
Horse-radish – Armoracia Rusticana
Long-keeping horseradish sauce
For the syrup: 1/2 pt white vinegar to 1/2/pt white sugar + a little salt.
Dig horseradish root .Wash well and peel underwater.
Cut up the root roughly and mince.
In meantime make the syrup by dissolving the sugar and salt in the vinegar over a low heat. Allow to go cold.
Use a wide-neck jar with a vinegar-proof lid. Pack in a little horseradish then add a little syrup – fill the jar in this manner. Make sure it is tightly packed and no air spaces are left.
This will keep 12 months or more.
To serve: To a tablespoon of horseradish add same quantity of thick cream and extra vinegar to taste.
Scarlet Elf Cup – Sarcoscypha coccinea
Often found on dead wood in damp, shady places. The caps, which are edible when cooked, are usually 2 or 3 cm in diameter but can be as large as 5 cm.
The irregularly shaped cups have a smooth, red inner surface and a much paler felty outer surface. The edge of young cups is usually incurved.There is a very short stipe, often buried in leaf litter, and it is the same colour as the outer surface of the cup.
Primrose – Primula Vulgaris
Can be found in woodland or hedge banks, railway embankments. A low hairy plant. 10-25cm high, with crinkly leaves and pale yellow fragrant flowers. March-May. Both flowers and leaves are edible, the flavour ranging between mild lettuce and more bitter salad greens. The leaves can also be used for tea, and the young flowers can be made into primrose wine also can be used in salads candied.
- A generous handful of fresh wild primrose flowers
- 1 egg white
- 1 tsp rosewater caster sugar to coat
Morels – Morchella semilibera
Can be quite common to find in damp heavy soiled copses in the Spring. Cap 2-4cm, olive brown, slightly pitted with rather regular vertical ribs. stem creamy white & hollow. Also known as half free Morel.
Crispy morel recipe
This is one of the simplest morel recipes going, and a great way to enjoy them. Breadcrumbs is preferred as it makes them crunchier.
Amounts of morels aren’t listed. Just keep beating eggs and adding more butter to the skillet until the mushrooms are gone, which will be sooner than you want!
- Morels, sliced in half lengthwise
- 4 eggs, beaten
- 2 cups breadcrumbs (or flour)
- 4 tablespoons of butter
- Salt and pepper to taste
In a large bowl, roll the morels in the beaten eggs. Make sure they’re fully covered.
In a separate bowl mix together the breadcrumbs, salt, and pepper.
Dip the egg-covered morels in the breadcrumbs, making sure all surfaces of the mushrooms are covered with the crumbs.
Melt the butter in a large skillet on medium-high heat. Fry the morels until they are brown and crispy on all sides. It’s best to do this in small batches, rather than overcrowding your skillet.
Repeat until you’re so full that you can’t take it anymore, or until you run out of mushrooms.
Sweet Violets – Viola odorata
Fairly common in hedgebanks and shady places also open woodland/grassland usually on chalk or alkaline soils, Low, creepy and downy. The flower is usually dark violet but can sometimes be pink/yellow, Sweet smelling. Leaves rounded. Generally it does not grow much above 150mm in height. March to May
Crystallised Violets Recipe
1 egg white
caster sugar
freshly picked violets
Paint every crevice of the violet with egg white. You can use a paint brush for this, but as I didn’t have three clean brushes in the house we used cotton buds, which did the job perfectly well. Then sprinkle with caster sugar until completely covered. Place onto a silicone baking sheet or greaseproof paper and leave to dry.
Silver weed – Argentina anserina
Silvery green in appearance, the leaves have saw toothed edges. Found anywhere with grass – lawns waste ground and recreation grounds etc.
Oxeye Daisy– Leucanthemum vulgare
Widespread usually in the summer in grassy places especially rich soil. Erect steams up to 75cm, one flower on each steam, each with a ring of white petals and central yellow button. The un-opened flower buds can be marinatedand used in a similar way to capers. Young leaves can be eaten in salads.
- 150g oxeye daisy flower buds, picked before they show an indication of opening
- 80g salt
- 300ml cider vinegar
- 100g oxeye daisy greens
- 100g young dandelion leaves
- 50g sweet violet leaves and sweet violet flowers
- 125ml olive oil
- 45ml lemon juice
- 1 tbsp prepared English (hot) mustard
- 3 tbsp capers,minced salt and freshly-ground black pepper