Collected in Kane County today:

Harvested from the roadside woods near Dowagiac MI, last Sunday.

Made for a great soup with the addition of local asparagus and some pancetta.

Did I completely miss them in stores this year??

I saw fresh morels at WF North Ave. about a month ago, 19.99 for a small container of them.

jleblanc05 wrote:Did I completely miss them in stores this year??

Since you are in this neck of the woods, I would recommend that you head out to the farm store:

River Valley Ranch Mushroom Farm
39900 60th St
Burlington, WI 53105
(262) 539-3555
https://www.rivervalleykitchens.co…

The farm is located a few miles EAST of Lake Geneva on RT. 50. It is a mile east of Lake Geneva Meats.

I was there Tuesday morning and they had plenty of morels - at $3/oz or approximately $12 for a pint.

Call to make sure that they have some in stock.

Valley Ranch morels are down to $48/lb at the Green City Market today . . . sounds like this week (possibly next) is probably your last chance.

I saw them at the Marianos in Greek Town this morning.

I found an interesting recipe recently that called for morels, so had made a mental note to investigate where to buy/cost, etc. Since I've never had them that I'm aware of, are they worth the investment?

sdbond wrote:I found an interesting recipe recently that called for morels, so had made a mental note to investigate where to buy/cost, etc. Since I've never had them that I'm aware of, are they worth the investment?

If you've never tried them, but a couple of them at a place that sells them individually (like the Green City Market) . . . will cost you less than $5 . . . and then you'll know. When it comes to expensive food items, value is in the eyes (or taste) of the beholder.

sdbond wrote:I found an interesting recipe recently that called for morels, so had made a mental note to investigate where to buy/cost, etc. Since I've never had them that I'm aware of, are they worth the investment?

We used to gather them up by the dozens back home in Ohio. They have a unique mushroom taste. Whether it is worth it - sure, at least once just to say that you did it.

They're here! I don't remember the price per pound, but for approximately 20 small to medium-sized shrooms, Eataly yesterday was $13.75 and Mariano's (Western & Roscoe) today was $5.50. Interesting experience at Mariano's in that the price wasn't marked at the produce stand, but I was willing to take the plunge to supplement yesterday's splurge for tonight's risotto. When I was checking out, the cashier asked me if I remembered the price. I told him no, as it wasn't listed. He called produce, then sent a guy over when they didn't call back, and confirmed $40-something ($49?) per pound. I told him fine, they were cheaper than Eataly. He was surprised my take totaled under $6. He then told me they intentionally don't post the price because people, seemingly people who have never eaten and would never buy morels, freak out when they see those figures in print.