Fake-a-Roo

I was helping Mike fall a large hemlock tree by carrying the axe and four wedges to the base of the tree before the sawing commenced when a bit of yellow color caught my eye.

Woopie! I thought to myself, the first Chanterelle had popped up. Mike noticed that I was not paying any attention to my duties and looked at the yellow spot. He knew instantly that it was not a delicious mushroom immediately and he was several yards away. The color just wasn’t right. I wanted to examine it closer just to make sure and when I pulled the foliage away saw a large specimen pretty close.

Once I lifted it out of the Oregon Grape and wild blackberry vines, I too could see that not only was the color quite right, the fins did not run down the stem and the stem itself was not Chanterelle characteristics.

I broke it open to find a very spongy middle, another sure sign of a fake-a-roo. Disappointed but sure was glad that I confirmed the imposter before I tried making a meal out of it.

Within a couple days, I did find the gold of the forest that I have been on the lookout for. The first Chanterelle was hiding in the protected cuff of an old-growth fir tree stump and was just barely popping out of the duff.

The yellow was definitely the perfect color with the outside a lighter orange. The fins ran right down the stem and the root pulled away from the dirt and cast off needles perfectly.

Within an hour, I had a bucketful of beautiful beauties.

Some are already so large they would not be considered prime or #1’s, but they are perfectly acceptable to cook and eat. The bounty has begun.