Candy caps (Lactatius rubidus) are fruiting abundantly on the Northern California coast right now. My family and I picked about 2 pounds today. For those unfamiliar, these mushrooms develop a strong maple flavor and odor when dried.

I’ve never had so many before, so I’m interested if anyone has made anything interesting with these. I’ve made ice cream in the past which was excellent but it might be good to mix things up a bit.

I’m particularly interested to see how they would work in more savory dishes and if anyone has eaten them fresh. Is it worth doing or do they need to be dried to be appreciated properly?

  • acockworkorange
    2·
    6 days ago

    Never had this, but I’ve used chanterelles to make a sauce for fillet mignon. You cook the mushrooms in a frying pan with butter, salt, peppers, and wine or cognac. Scoop the shrooms out and use the flavored butter to cook your meat, adding salt and pepper. Scoop the meat out and add cream to the pan with heat off, stirring well to make the sauce.