Hello friends! I hope everyone had a fantastic weekend and a good start to the new week. I couldn't let my Monday pass without sharing once again how amazing my farmers market is. Seriously, my farmers and local vendors still surprise me sometimes with the new things popping up. This week a new vendor Bella Vita Mushrooms joined the Marietta family. As soon as I saw her booth I hurried right over to wait my turn to see all the stunning mushrooms that she had for purchase. Crazy to think just a few years ago I would turn my nose up at the thought of mushrooms starring on my plate, but here I am writing a whole post about them!
I should have taken a picture of the booth, but just imagine a whole table filled with oyster mushrooms galore, lion's mane, chanterelle's and I think one or two other varieties I'm forgetting at the moment. I have seen the typical white oyster mushrooms before, but never have I seen pink ones! The pink and yellow were too gorgeous not to purchase. What stunning muses to work with in the kitchen, right?
The pink oyster (Pleurotus djamor), are almost floral in their appearance, but the pink hue does fade once cooked. Nature really is amazing when you look around and find all of these varying shades of color in edible items. Once I got home I looked up some information about my haul on healing-mushrooms.net on differences in flavor and beneficial properties. A wonderful resource that I'm happy to have landed upon, though I'm lucky to know some other great mushroom aficionados through blogging that have given me some great information, as well.
The yellow, or golden (Pleurotus citrinopileatus) oyster mushrooms are no less eye-catching in their own appearance. The color is inviting, but the clusters of growth are so cool to see. I'm sure it would be a blast to get some spores to try to grow some at home at least once or twice, but I'm also quite happy supporting a local female-owned business. Lots of lady farmers in the Atlanta area rocking it right now! (Sorry fellas, you know I love you, too) 😉
Besides just looking so rad and mushrooms being a great way to add umami and texture to vegan dishes, oyster mushrooms like other edible fungi are reported to have many health benefits. They're low in calories and have no cholesterol, but shrooms have a decent about of protein, fiber and other nutrients like B vitamins, potassium and many antioxidants. They have been studied to be beneficial in lowering inflammation, supporting the immune system, reducing cholesterol and promoting stable blood pressure. Of course no one food is a magic bullet for perfect health, but a diet full of beneficial ingredients certainly doesn't hurt to keep your body in tip top shape from the inside out!
Speaking of diet, I'm sure you want to see how I enjoyed incorporating these beauties into my cooking this time around. The boyfriend has gotten good at making homemade pizza dough, so I set him to work Saturday evening to make us a nice weekend meal. He started working on the dough and I whipped up a yummy pesto with fresh oregano from the garden, fennel fronds, sunflower seeds, nutritional yeast, garlic and red wine vinegar. He added onions, Swiss chard, halved cherry tomatoes and some vegan cheese as a treat for the top. While the pizza was cooking I sauteed the golden oyster mushrooms with sliced green onions from the garden so that the mushrooms would be cooked to perfection. Once the pizza came out of the oven I finished it off with the mushroom mixture on top. Perfection!
We polished off half on Saturday, then had the rest for lunch on Sunday afternoon. The mushrooms were chewy and slightly nutty, adding a great texture to the pizza. This might just be one of the best pizzas we've made at home! Who needs takeout?
Not wanting the pink mushrooms to dry out, I got to work incorporating those into some homemade tacos last night. I had made a big batch of pinto beans to pop in the freezer in the morning, so I kept a few cups out to turn into a non-fried re-fried bean addition to spread on the base of the taco. The mushrooms I sliced up to saute with red onions and some of my fresh patty pan squash from the garden. I took the easy route with organic store bought salsa and a new vegan sour cream (Forager brand) made from cashews and coconut cream that was a delicious tangy topper.
I added a lot of spices to the pan when cooking up the mushroom mixture, so their flavor wasn't really pronounced in the final dish. They had a great meaty texture, though, and the dish was another winner. I think Dave went back for seconds and thirds...
Definitely some fun with fungi this week! I'll have to get back in the kitchen today to cook up the rest of my delicious market goodies. This time of year is just heaven at the farmers market with all the glorious summer produce in such abundance. I know my pal @lenasveganliving would be in #fruitsandveggiesmonday heaven if she could visit, and @fionasfavourites has threatened to block me if I taunt her much more with my vibrant finds. I truly am a lucky foodie to live here in Atlanta!
Happy cooking my friends!
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Spreading the shroom love with a little...
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OMG!!! I should not have read this just before going to make the dinner! I am literally drooling.... I shall have to excommunicate myself....
Seriously, though, I have grown oyster mushrooms: not difficult, but you do, literally, have to give them the mushroom treatment every day. We had a mushroom guy in the village for a while and I'd get fabulous pink oysters from him. Even wrote a blog post about them - in my early days. The post has been trashed - not one I'd reconstitute! lol
That said, the flavour of those mushrooms is differently delicious and yes, one does have to deal with the texture and make peace with destroying their loveliness when one cooks them.
Haha, sorry about that. Though you return the favor plenty often enough. ;)
Yes, I haven't even gotten to trying the sourdough starter yet, so not sure when mushrooms will be added to the list. Though perhaps Dave would take on the duty...nah, I'll stick with my mushroom lady for now. We've got enough to do keeping up with the jungle in the garden. Still pounds (yes, pounds) of mint to harvest and pull out before it takes over the rest of the plants. 🤣
🤣
Beautiful mushrooms 🍄 I never eat mushrooms color like this. Your food looks beautiful and delicious! 😍
I know you would have loved to see all of these, as well! This was my first time to try pink or yellow mushrooms, but it won't be the last! :)
Always wishing that id find oyster mushroom whenever i go shopping
They are great for making "meatballs"
Ooh, good idea for next time. They definitely have a meaty texture! I don't often find them otherwise, so it's great to have them available now. I hope the ladies had a good first market and stick around for a while!
Oh this make me happy and gets me excited!!! First off, congrats on your haul, those are some fine looking mushrooms you got there. The food you made with them looks just as good and delicious.
I just received in the mail my order of white oyster spawn and I can't wait to get going on it. I just need to find some good straw or Aspen wood chips somewhere and then I can start. Maybe that day will be today! Thanks for the great post @plantstoplanks!
Also, curious where you got that image made of the plants to planks with the yellow flowers? I would love one similar but with my name and an image to depict it. TIA!
Oh how fun! I hope you can get them going soon. I'm sure you'll find some good ways to cook them up, too. Definitely a fun project!
A dear friend from my initial Steem days made that image for me, but she hasn't been active in what seems like years now. Not sure how to contact her at this point, but my boyfriend @dksart does graphic design so he could probably whip something up in a similar style. 😄
I really hope so too!
If he would be willing, I'd be willing to send over some ideas I have and also some Hive for his time :)
He said feel free to comment on one of his latest posts to touch base, or you can find him on discord DKSArt#5133. :)
What a lovely plate with colorful mushrooms!
Your dishes look yummy. I WANT them so much 😍
I'm still holding out for the big blockchain cooking Meetup! So many people I would love to cook with and try their food! 😜
What Beautiful Recipe i love fungy.
Thank you! :)
Gorgeous!! The way this monsoon season is shaping up, I will be harvesting them from mu LINEN CLOSET soon. 🤣
Haha, oh I can only imagine!
Great find and some delicious looking dishes you cooked up with those colorful oyster mushrooms! Got me salivating for some of that pizza and tacos so much I'm going to take a break and cook up some broccoli quiche with our fresh farm eggs!
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Curating does indeed work up a good appetite! I'm sure your quiche will be delicious. Thanks for popping by @porters! 🤗
That really was an amazing find. They have some lovely colours! I’ve featured your post in The Lotus Garden newsletter, which will be published tomorrow and you've been selected as the recipient of the 5% beneficiary.
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Aww, thanks so much for the support @minismallholding! Much appreciated. 💚
never really seen those mushroom before and this is my first time. What a beautiful mushroom you found!
Aren't they so neat? I had never seen the pink one for sure, so it was a fun find. :)