will bear modifying in certain instances where only the best
species have been utilised, after scrupulous selection, before they
are wormy or overripe, and where they have been preserved by the
"Appert process," _au naturel_, without oil, brandy, or vinegar, in
hermetically sealed cans, and used before they have been thus preserved
for a long period. Under these conditions the species melanosporum and
magnatum retain no little of their pristine virtues, and may still
glorify a sauce or dignify a Châteaubriand. To the skill of the cook
the result will be principally due. Inasmuch as the truffles have
already been subjected to several hours' ebullition, they should only
be finely sliced and gently heated in order that their flavour may
not be dissipated by the cooking. The dish they are to grace should
be prepared first, and so soon as the truffles are ready it should
be immediately served under cover. Perhaps as good a medium for
utilising the preserved product is a steak with a bordelaise sauce in
which garlic or shallots should figure very lightly. The comparative
excellence of the preserved truffle will depend, of course, upon
freshness and the probity and care of the merchant.
One may obtain all sorts of truffles with attractive labels, as one may
obtain attractively labelled Château wines that may "leave everything
to be desired."
At a dinner where a _bon vivant_ was expected, the truffle figured in a
novel manner.
"A friend who is very fond of good things is to be my guest over
Sunday," said the host to the cook, who was an excellent practitioner
in certain lines; "and I want you to use truffles plentifully some way."
"How shall I cook them, Mr. S? Mrs. S. isn't here."
"Oh, I don't know; anyway, I'm in a great hurry, and I'll leave it to
you."
The soup was admirable, the lobster _à la Newburgh_ perfect, and the
entrée and pommes soufflées left nothing to be wished for. To the
surprise of all, a large, heaping dish of truffles, charred, highly
spiced, and finely minced and served as a vegetable, appeared with the
roast.
The host remained imperturbable, a vestige of a frown clouded the
usually placid face of madame, the butler poured the Chambertin, and
the truffles were passed by.
"You are the most expensive guest I have had in a long time," remarked
the host, with a smile, the following day. "I must think what we can
have this evening for dinner; or, better, consult with madame. There
is plenty of champagne in which to cook truffles, if the cook and the
truffles were in evidence. I told her I wanted plenty of truffles for
you, and the remaining eleven cans of the dozen in the larder were
tendered you last night."
The truffle has formed the theme of numerous books and treatises. To
the French gastronomer who may obtain the fresh product during a large
portion of the year, the work of M. M. Moynier will unquestionably
prove of the greatest value--a major portion being devoted to a
scientific analysis of the various dishes, with their recipes, in
which the esculent may properly figure. It is justly claimed by the
author that wine is an indispensable accompaniment of this "astonishing
production" or any dish in which it may enter; but that sweet
champagne to which women are so partial masks rather than quickens
its flavour.[53] The mycologist who simply wishes to know the species
and habits of hypogæus fungi will no doubt prefer the monograph of
Vittatini, Milan, 1831; that of M. Tulasne, Paris, 1852; and the
instructive work of Dr. de Ferry already cited. Few more interesting
fields for research offer themselves than that presented by the black
pearl which is concealed beneath the soil--living its strange life
beyond the ken of human eye, and revealing itself only through the
agency of the animals employed by man to discover it, and of the insect
tribes that hover above it in their dance of rivalry and love.
Savarin, above all writers, has considered the truffle philosophically
in his comparatively brief reference; and although he failed to answer
the question, "What is the truffle, how is it produced, and how does
it grow?" he has still appraised its virtues in his own inimitable way.
That it is digestible has been amply proven before, and this point
did not require his researches to substantiate. The only charges that
history records against it are gluttony in eating it, and the fact that
Lartius Licinius, a person of prætorian rank, while minister of justice
at Carthage in Spain, upon biting a truffle found a denarius inside,
which cost him the loss of a tooth--a proof to Pliny that it was
nothing but an agglomeration of elementary earth. Of certain attributes
it is supposed to possess, the sixth Meditation of the "Physiology,"
to which the reader is referred, will speak clearly for itself; and
it will be sufficient to transcribe the conclusion of the learned
chancellor's deductions:
"_La truffe n'est point un aphrodisiaque positif; mais elle
peut en certaines occasions rendre les femmes plus tendres et
les hommes plus aimables._"
Referring to Savarin's conclusion, Dr. de Ferry makes this statement,
based on professional experience:
"_Sur l'individu sain et bien portant, la truffe excite des
fonctions spéciales.... La truffe peut ajouter seulement
aux qualités de ceux qui possèdent; elle n'est plus d'aucun
secours à ceux qui, n'ayant pas géré leur capital en bons
pères de famille, ont consommé leur ruine._"
Little attention has been paid to the question whether edible truffles
equal to the best European species exist within the broad area of the
United States, whence so many useful and delicious food products and
flavourings have sprung. M. Moynier states that he has tasted most
excellent truffles from Brazil; and that a grey species of merit, round
in form, is found on the right bank of the Mississippi--a somewhat
vague statement, in view of the length of that river. The only species
that Saccardo's "Sylloge" credits to this country is T. macrosporum,
said to have been found in Pennsylvania. Some years ago Mr. W. R.
Gerard reported having discovered T. dryophilum on Staten Island.
Rhizopogon rubescens, a puff-ball, grows underground in the Southern
States, and is sometimes mistaken for the truffle; also certain species
of Scleroderma, or puff-balls which are partially underground. There
are besides some of the false truffles of the genus Elaphomyus in the
Eastern States. It will thus be seen that the subterranean fungi belong
to three distinct orders. Dr. H. W. Harkness, in 1899, issued in the
California Academy of Science Proceedings an illustrated article on the
Hypogæus Fungi of California, wherein he describes thirteen species, of
which seven are new and all of which he pronounces edible, though few,
if any, of them are found in abundance or are worth considering from a
practical standpoint.
[Illustration: "NOUVEL MANUEL COMPLET DU CUISINIER ET DE LA
CUISINIÈRE"
Facsimile of frontispiece, 1822]
From this it may be inferred that if these fungi could be diligently
sought for in other States by those who have carefully studied the
haunts and habitat of the tuber abroad, many desirable species might
be found to belong to our country. Dr. Harkness does not mention T.
melanosporum among Californian species. At present we do not know
whether this or T. magnatum, or some form possessing equally adorable
qualities, occurs in our country at all; but they and others, it is
possible, may yet be unearthed to disclose to the epicure a true
"sample of Paradise." To do this, trained truffle-pigs and-dogs must
be brought into requisition; and should the search then be unrewarded,
the truffle-oak must needs be imported and planted under conditions
corresponding to those of its native habitat. Let America add the
truffle to her already rich alimentary resources, by all means, even
if she must remain content with the wines of France as supplied from
oversea.
* * * * *
If the truffle may be described as an occult vegetable substance with
no stem, cap, or visible mycelium, in great repute with epicures, and
most generally found firmly embedded beneath the surface of _pâté de
foie gras_,--the mushroom, common to nearly all latitudes, grows in
visible profusion, and may be readily obtained for the seeking. Some
knowledge of genera and species, nevertheless, becomes necessary if one
would avail himself of this nutritious esculent. One must know what to
avoid as well as what to choose; for often highly dangerous sorts are
very nearly allied to the harmless.
Of recent years the study of fungi has received considerable attention,
and the mushroom has become much better known with us than formerly.
Compared with European countries, however, the average person still
knows little concerning its edible varieties. Few are unacquainted with
the most prevalent form, Agaricus campestris, whose shining white
pileus dots the meadows, pastures, and roadsides. But whether familiar
or unknown out of doors, no introduction to it will be required at
table. Its very mention makes one's mouth water, and evokes a longing
for the cool shadows of fall and the restful minor of the crickets'
choir.
To appreciate it thoroughly, one should gather it himself, or, rather,
in congenial companionship. And as its form is typical of femininity in
its rounded contours, its white satiny gown and rose-silk petticoat, to
say nothing of its dainty veil and frill, it is eminently proper that
madame or mademoiselle, as the case may be, should join in the quest.
On a bland September day, therefore, let the lanes and pastures remote
from the highway be explored in company when the first ripening sprays
of the sugar-maple are commencing to brighten and the clusters of the
everlasting are beginning to unfold. Then will the delights of the
chase prove doubly enjoyable; and with the common agaric as the object
of pursuit there will equally be little danger from mistaken varieties.
At most, the harmless horse-mushroom may obtrude, to be plucked and
cast aside.
But the mushroom is far from being confined to the pastures and fields,
or its duration limited to a few weeks of autumn; and despite the
excellent general dietetic advice of the fourth satire of the second
book, Horace's dictum should not be taken too seriously,--
"Best flavoured mushrooms meadow-land supplies,
In other kinds a dangerous poison lies."
By many A. Rodmani, the small compact species common to cities and
found growing along the sidewalks and curb, is preferred to campestris.
Less rich, it still possesses a full, nutty fragrance and flavour, and
is more digestible. Even more distinguished is another agaric, Lepiota
procura, or the tall parasol-mushroom--one of the most delicious of all
edible fungi. Many valuable species throng the woods and shady places
during a large portion of the genial season, to push through the mould
or clothe the stumps and decaying logs--in most instances ungathered or
unseen. And though Claudius, Tiberius, Pope Clement VII, Charles V of
France, Czar Alexis of Russia, and many other celebrated personages met
their death from eating deleterious mushrooms, and every year scores of
families are poisoned through them, the esculent continues to occupy
a highly exalted place among aliments. Ignorance and carelessness are
almost entirely responsible for disastrous results, owing to its use
as food, although ill effects naturally occur through over-indulgence
in eating perfectly harmless varieties, or where these may have passed
the edible stage. Extremely rich in nitrogenous elements as well as in
sapid properties, mushrooms should be sparingly partaken of. Sliced and
placed on hot toast which has been moistened with broth and the juices
of the cooking, one may often obtain all the flavour of the mushroom by
its employment in moderate quantities, and thus over-ingestion will be
avoided.
The study of fungi has always proved a fascinating one for the
botanist. With the aid of nearly any of numerous monographs in which
the various genera are described, as also faithfully reproduced in
colours, the student and nature-lover may easily familiarize himself
with at least the more important species. In his search for practical
information he will be led through many a smiling scene removed from
the haunts of man; while his chief precaution in his pursuit out of
doors need only be to avoid the Taurus and the deadly Amanita. The
trained mycologist, however, will readily distinguish between the
beautiful toxic Fly-Amanita and the inviting edible orange variety,
which, having graced the table of a Roman emperor, received the
name "Cæsar's mushroom," whence its botanical appellation. This is
the "Oronge" of the French and "Kaiserling" of the Germans, more
prized, perhaps, than the Morel, the white Helvella, or the handsome
Chanterelle. Its odour is said to resemble a combination of vanilla and
truffles. The variety rubescens is also regarded as one of the best
of edible mushrooms. Of all fungi the Amanitas are most to be feared;
and while numerous other kinds possess unwholesome and forbidden
properties, the dangerously poisonous belong principally to this single
genus. To them Gerard's definitions, "excressences," "Toadstooles,"
"very venomous and full of poison," may well apply.
By the seventeenth-century poet William Browne, bard of "Britannia's
Pastorals" and "The Shepherd's Pipe," the mushroom is thus alluded to:
"Down in a valley by a forest's side,
Near where the crystal Thames rolls on her waves,
I saw a mushroom stand in haughty pride
As if the lilies grew to be his slaves."
Then, after praising the daisy, violet, and other flowers whose beauty
was overpowered by the fungus, he thus concludes a much-admired sonnet:
"These, with a many more, methought complained
That Nature should those needless things produce,
Which not alone the sun from others gained,
But turn it wholly to their proper use.
I could not choose but grieve that Nature made
So glorious flowers to live in such a shade."
Where noisome toadstools crowd out violets and daisies, it may be right
for poets to protest. As it is, we have little in the description to
guide us to the species, whether it was a desirable or an undesirable
kind. There is no allusion as to its toxic properties, nor yet to
its colour; and its seeming size--if the simile of the lilies be
considered--may only be a license which poets are allowed. But the bard
of Tavistock, whose "oaten melodye" still rings sweet and clear, has
written too lovingly of trees to suppose he could perceive no use or
beauty in a striking vegetable growth; and therefore the particular
form he refers to would appear to have been a noxious one.
Surely, it was not the lovely mauve-coloured Cortinarius, that seeks
the "forest's shade"; the expanded pea-green cope of the sweet and
nutty Russula; or the glowing orange hood of the dulcet Lactarius
that incurred his disapproval! Nor can one conceive it to have been
the tall-stemmed, fluted-capped Coprinus, or the stylish parasolled
Lepiota, which stands as upright as the stilted Bartramian sandpiper,
and that is held in equal esteem by the epicure. Rather let us suppose
it was the great poison Amanita, which has slain its thousands, and
whose brilliant reds and salmons and yellows, and white scales borne
aloft on their hollow pedestal, cry aloud from every gill, "Beware!"
Or if it was not this or the equally deadly A. phalloides on which his
graceful sonnet was based, it must have been the Lycoperdon which cast
its shade upon the violets--the giant puff-ball that the poet did not
recognise as a valuable food product when neatly sliced and fried, and
that it is still the rule to kick out of one's way.
In like manner, one is curious to know what was the enormous fungus
or mushroom Thoreau describes as meeting on one of his rambles, and
which, in turn, incurs his malediction,--the huge thallogen he found
and plucked high up on the open side of a dry hill, in the midst of
and rising above the thin June grass, its sharply conical parasol in
the form of a sugarloaf slightly turned up at the edges, which were
rent half an inch for every inch or two. The whole length, he states,
was sixteen inches, the cap being six inches long by seven wide, the
stem about one inch in diameter and naked, the top of the cap pure
white within and without. He marvels how its soft cone ever broke
through the earth. It represents to him a vegetable force which may
almost make man tremble for his dominion. It carries him back to the
era of the formation of the coal measures, the age of the Saurus and
the Pliosaurus, when bull-frogs were as big as bulls. What part has it
to perform in the economy of the world? It brought before him pictures
of parasols of Chinese mandarins; or it might have been used by the
great fossil bull-frog in his walks. Returning home with it, he placed
it in the cellar to note its decay. Like the mighty, it fell. By night
there remained not more than two of the six inches of the height of the
cap, and it went on rapidly melting from the edges upward, spreading as
it dissolved till it was shaped like a dish-cover and the barrel head
beneath it and its own stem looked as if a large bottle of ink had been
broken there. It defiled all it touched. Is it not a giant mildew or
mould? he inquires. The offspring of a night, it was wasted in a day.
One thinks of Coprinus comatus--a colossal specimen of the "shaggy
mane"; and doubtless this was the species encountered by the Walden
sage, rearing its silver shaft through the thin June grass in his early
morning tramp to Pinxter Spring.
Who has not seen and wondered at the Fairy-ring, dotting the lawns or
pastures, with its eccentric habit of growing in circles or arcs of
circles, and shrinking and expanding under the influence of drought and
moisture? Yet how few are acquainted with its admirable qualities! But
even here one must distinguish between the false and the true, and not
mistake it for two of its genus, the poison buff-coloured Champignon
and poison Fairy-ring, which it resembles and with which it is
sometimes found associated. In like manner, the rufous hues of several
edible Russulas must not be confounded with the engaging crimsons of
the alveolate Boletus, or the brilliant shades of the unwholesome R.
emetica, one of the most tempting of fungi to the eye. Its glowing
satiny scarlet cap, set off by its white stem and gills, forms a dash
of colouration on the woodland carpet that immediately challenges
admiration. With various others of the alluring but dangerous fungi, it
suggests some luscious tropic fruit, the flame of tulips, or the flush
of Ghent azaleas. What a revel of reds, what greens and golds, what
soft violets and greys, what rich russets and maroons are not unfolded
by these strange fungoid flowers! The beefsteak-mushroom (Fistulina
hepatica) is familiar to many as it reveals its red velvety layers
or shelves on the dead trunks of oaks and chestnuts in the midsummer
woods. But despite its appetising name, it has a somewhat acid flavour
and leathery taste, and cannot be said to possess very palatable
qualities, conditions also shared by the common Agaricus ostreatus, or
oyster-mushroom.
While the canned French button-mushroom of commerce is not to be
compared with the same species in its freshly gathered stage, it is
nevertheless useful as a garnish, and possesses a certain flavour.
Far different is the large French cèpe, one of the most delicious
of esculents, corresponding to the German "Steinpilz" and our own
edible Boletus, which is much less known than it deserves to be. Of
the French Boletus there are two principal varieties--the _cèpe franc
à la tête noir_ or _charbonnier_, common to oak woods, and the _tête
rousse_ or _brune_, common to chestnut woods. The former is much more
esteemed, and is most abundant in the southern departments. These, like
the truffle in the preserved state, should be as fresh as possible,
and those of the previous autumn gathering, put up _au naturel_ in
large cans, be selected in preference. Boletus edulis, though not
over-plentiful with us, may be found during warm, damp weather
from July to September in woods and their margins, and sometimes
in open places. Prepared _à la bordelaise_, it is a most delicious
and nutritious dish, a form of preparation that may be utilised to
advantage with many other firm-fleshed species. Dumas' favourite mode
of preparing them was after Vuillemot's recipe; and for those who are
not fond of oil, which the bordelaise and provençale manner calls for,
this will doubtless prove more acceptable:
"Cut and chop the stems, adding minced parsley, breadcrumbs,
shallots, fresh butter, and a clove of chopped garlic; make
a pâté of it all, season with salt, pepper, and a little
allspice, garnish the bottom of the cèpes, sprinkle some
breadcrumbs on top, brown in a hot oven, and serve."
Here again, as Baron Brisse would say, "the trouble is trifling and the
succulence extreme."
The United States has a number of edible Boleti, some distinctive
and some identical with the best French species. Unfortunately, the
genus contains several deleterious sorts, and these frequently are not
readily distinguishable from description alone. Several of the Boleti
have long been considered as among the most dangerous of the toadstool
or mushroom tribe; but recent investigations tend to show that the
majority are at least harmless, while many are most desirable.
Of Morels and puff-balls none is said to be poisonous. The puff-ball,
however, is unfit for eating, if not absolutely poisonous, after the
formation and ripening of its spores; and in gathering puff-balls
great care should be taken not to mistake for them several of the
poison Amanitas in their younger stage, these being similarly enveloped
in a spherical sack or volva. Most mushrooms, apart from the Amanitas,
are now regarded as not deadly poisonous. Indeed, McIlvaine declares
that R. emetica, which he and others repeatedly partook of in liberal
quantities while in the Carolinas, proved to be perfectly harmless.
The viscid, glutinous types, all the so-called trembling toadstools,
together with such as are unpleasant to the sense of smell, will of
course be shunned, while those not well acquainted with fungi will also
view with distrust the various beautiful and gorgeous species which
haunt the shade.
No reliance may be placed in the "test" of the silver spoon. The novice
should first of all familiarise himself with the more common species
through some of the less technical treatises, or take a practical
lesson from a specialist out of doors. The manner of distinguishing
doubtful varieties adopted by mycologists may also be utilised by the
amateur: first be guided by the shape and smell, being careful to avoid
all cup-shaped kinds, or those whose juices change colour on cutting;
then taste sparingly without swallowing, when, if not acrid, burning,
or disagreeable, a little of the juice may be swallowed the following
day, increasing the amount day by day, if no feelings of nausea occur,
until the wholesomeness of the species is demonstrated. By discarding
all kinds with cups or suggestion of cups, the Amanitas will be
avoided. "Any mushroom, _omitting the Amanita_, which is pleasant to
the taste and otherwise agreeable as to odour and texture when raw, is
probably harmless," says Gibson, "and may safely be thus _ventured on_
with a view of establishing its edibility." Still, it is always well,
even by the initiated, to remember the apothegm of Gavarni, "Mushrooms
are like men--the bad most closely counterfeit the good."
Of the scores of treatises devoted to the subject may be specially
instanced W. Hamilton Gibson's artistic volume,[54] the finely
illustrated "Report of the New York State Botanist,"[55] Professor
Atkinson's illustrated "Studies of American Fungi,"[56] and, finally,
Captain McIlvaine's elaborate and exhaustive monograph.[57]
Recipes for the cookery of mushrooms are abundant in the cook-books and
treatises on fungi; and, like the cook-books themselves, these vary
from good to bad and indifferent. Some general rules regarding their
proper preparation are well and briefly laid down by the Marquis de
Cussy in his "Art Culinaire":