Yesterday Dan and I took the dogs for a nice long walk in the woods. But we moved a bit too slowly for the canines' taste, peering closely at the leaf litter and stepping with care. You see, we had an ulterior motive: We were hunting morel mushrooms. And we found them!

Morels, which include several species of the genus Morchella, are one of the most sought-after wild mushrooms in the United States. They are renowned for their exceptional flavor and are relatively easy to identify due to their unique appearance. Although widely dispersed throughout the temperate U.S., morels are notoriously stealthy. Their wrinkled, brain-like caps blend in remarkably well with the leaf litter of the forest floor. They usually fruit in April or May, with a very short season of only a few weeks. Some people claim morels like to grow in old apple orchards (this seems to be the case for our main patch), while others suggest they prefer dying elms or tulip poplars. They also can be found in recently disturbed areas, especially burn sites. Once you have located a morel patch, it is likely that they will reappear in the same spot year after year. But no sane mushroom hunter would willingly reveal the location of his or her morel patch, so don't bother to ask.

We usually only find a couple of the little delicacies on our property, so we were quite pleased with the day's take of about a dozen small Common/Yellow Morels (Morchella esculenta). I created a downright delicious pasta dish featuring sautéed morels, the earliest shoots from our asparagus bed, a bit of crumbled local bacon, homegrown garlic, and fresh chives and oregano from our herb gardens. Locavore bliss! We'll be back in the woods regularly for the next few weeks, seeking these secretive delicacies.