Cauliflower mushrooms add zest to any number of entrees. Bruce Ingram
If there were a contest for the most aptly named fungi, then the Eastern cauliflower mushroom would certainly be among the favorites to take the prize. Spot one from afar, and you’ll likely agree that the creamy white clump growing from an oak’s base or its roots make the mushroom look like the namesake vegetable. View this fungi up close, however, and you’ll note that the cauliflower features long, white wavy branches (unlike the vegetable) that grow in a cluster.
In early fall last year, I experienced cauliflower nirvana when I found a half dozen or so specimens growing in a Botetourt County, Virginia woodlot. I gathered them and for the next several months my wife Elaine deployed them in all sorts of marvelous meat, egg, and salad dishes. There’s a reason the cauliflower mushroom is rated as a choice edible.
As always with all things mushroom, several warnings must be given. Do not consume a mushroom the first time you gather it until you consult an expert who can positively identify the species. Raw, wild mushrooms should never be consumed, and even the choice edibles can cause stomach distress for some individuals.
Bruce and Elaine Ingram will profile a different wild edible every month. For more information on their book Living the Locavore Lifestyle, contact them at bruceingramoutdoors@gmail.com
