False Morel
(Gyromitra esculenta)
This strange looking brain like blob is a mushroom. If its looks seem offputting, then just as well since this little fellow is very poisonous and eating it could be fatal! So what does it have in common with puffer fish? Well, if you are brave enough and know how to cook it, it can be turned into a delicacy!
Strange Finding
It's the first time I spotted these mushrooms. I was coming back from a forest stroll and I noticed them growing in someone's front garden. Their natural habitat is a coniferous woodland but here they sprung out of bark chips.
To cook or not to cook?
I love mushrooms, I forage for them and I love trying new foods, so after reading how people eat them, I was tempted to ask the garden owners if I could pick the false morels. However, I came across warnings that you never know how much of the toxin each specimen will produce so even when cooked by an experienced chef, these mushrooms are a serious hazard.
My decision was to give these curios mushrooms a miss, at least this time. I read that in Finland you can buy them fresh and I am sure some restaurants probably serve them. If I will try them I want to do so knowing what I'm doing or trusting the person preparing them.
Instead, I came back to visit these false morels with my camera. It might not be as exciting as trying to eat them but it's definitely safer and still very satisfying, just in a different way.
Photographed with Fujifilm FinePix S2500HD Camera. Edited using Gimp