Fall Foraging

Written By BEACHES OF 59

Fall is a beautiful and busy time of year for me. Between going back to driving the school bus and hockey practices for the boy, It’s hard to find time to do my favourite things. Hiking, foraging, and canning!

I am currently on the look out for some honey mushrooms (Armillaria mellea) AKA “Pidpenky”. Last year we were picking them by the end of September… but nothing yet! They should start popping up around the beaches this first week of October!

Below is a description of honey mushrooms. Never eat a mushroom that you cannot 100% identify! Make sure to do a Spore print! Spore prints can be done by placing the mushroom cap gill side down on a dark surface overnight, loosely covered w/ Saran Wrap. Honeys have a white spore print. This is very important. Research dangerous lookalikes and become aware of the differences.

“The basidiocarp of each has a smooth cap 3 to 15 cm (1 to 6 in) in diameter, convex at first but becoming flattened with age often with a central raised umbo, later becoming somewhat dish-shaped. The margins of the cap are often arched at maturity and the surface is sticky when wet. Though typically honey-coloured, this fungus is rather variable in appearance and sometimes has a few dark, hairy scales near the centre somewhat radially arranged. The gills are white at first, sometimes becoming pinkish-yellow or discoloured with age, broad and fairly distant, attached to the stipe at right angles or are slightly decurrent. The stipe is of variable length, up to about 20 cm (8 in) long and 3.5 cm (1+1⁄2 in) in diameter. It is fibrillose and of a firm spongy consistency at first but later becomes hollow. It is cylindrical and tapers to a point at its base where it is fused to the stipes of other mushrooms in the clump. It is whitish at the upper end and brownish-yellow below, often with a very dark-coloured base. There is a broad persistent skin-like ring attached to the upper part of the stipe. This has a velvety margin and yellowish fluff underneath and extends outwards as a white partial veil protecting the gills when young. The flesh of the cap is whitish and has a sweetish odour and flavour with a tinge of bitterness” -Wikipedia

Aside from honey mushrooms, I have also been busy collection wild plums for jam, apples for jelly, and wild grapes for jelly! Recipes below!

Wild grape jelly

To make juice:

** Grapes don’t need to be removed from stem, just pick bundles off the main branch and remove all leaves etc

  • 14 cups of grapes

  • 6 cups of water

  1. Boil for 6-8min minimum and up to 15 minutes

  2. Mash the grapes up just a bit to release juices

  3. Pour into a new stocking/pantyhose, tie, and hang overnight above a large pot to catch the drippings

To make jelly: 

( large stock pot as it expands as it boils)

  1. 3 cups of juice ( at a hard boil)

  2. Add 4.5 cups of white sugar

  3. Hard boil for 6 min

  4. Add 1 (85ml) package of liquid pectin

  5. Bring back to a hard boil over high heat

  6. Once at a full boil (should expand and be frothy) boil EXACTLY 1 minute

  7. Pour jelly into hot sterilized jars

  8. Process in a water bath for 10min

  9. Let rest overnight, jelly with thicken with time (and even more so in the fridge)


Grandmas old fashioned, no pectin apple jelly

(see important notes at bottom)

To make juice:

  • Slightly underripe apples or a mixture of underripe and ripe. Or ripe and crab apples

  1. Boil apples in large pot just almost covered with water

  2. Mash and strain through a stocking overnight

To make jelly: 

Measure juice

  1. Heat it up in a LARGE pot and add equal amounts of sugar

  2. Continually stir on high heat (8-9) on stovetop until the jelly comes to a full rolling boil ( it should triple in amount and be frothy!) for 15-17 min

  3. Using a cold spoon that you had set in the freezer, scoop up a small amount of jelly and pour it back in pot immediately. If the jelly runs right off the spoon dripping in several spots it is not done. If it kind of forms together and slides off thicker or in one drip.. it’s done.

  4. Remove from heat immediately and pour into hot sterilized jars (DO NOT WATER BATH, it will ruin the jelly and is not necessary for storing)

    Notes:

  • Make only small batches at a time or it’s hard to get jelly to set . Recommend only doing no more than 4 pint size jars of juice at a time

  • 8 cups of juice makes 4 quart (2 pint) size jars of jelly

  • If you boil it too slow or over boil it, it ruins the natural pectin and won’t jelly

Wild plum jam

  • 1 pound wild plumbs (pitted by shoving the pit out with a chopstick or something similar)

  • 1 pound sugar

  • 1 tbsp lemon juice

  1. Pit plums and place in large pot

  2. Add lemon juice and cook a few minutes until plums begin to release their juices

  3. Stir in sugar

  4. Simmer, stirring often for 10-20 minutes, until jam begins to thicken

  5. Mash it a bit or put some through a food processor to desired consistency

  6. Pour into hot sterilized jars

  7. Process in water bath for 15 minutes

BEACHES OF 59
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