Morel Update May 21, 2011

Jim — Sun, 22 May 2011 00:05:22 +0000

This past Thursday I was in the Cadillac area all day in the rain looking for Morels. What I found were over 400 very nice white, and yellow Morels 2-6 inches tall and some were fist size, all fresh and in their prime. Ash trees were the key to finding them and there were often 4-12 morels around a tree. This weekend and next week will be the peak at least next weekend will be the grand finale. I plan on going for them at least twice more this next week and would go more but at $70+ per trip for gas, I cannot justify more trips than that. Of course depending on what I find and how I feel about more coming up, I could be swayed for more than 2 trips
For more info go to www.morelbook.com

April 10, 2011 Black Morels Are Up

Jim — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 14:40:45 +0000

I just found out though one of my High School classmate’s ’61 in Brookville, Indiana that they are beginng to find the Black Morels in southern Indiana/Brookville areas. This means that the white/grey Morels should start within the next 7-10 days.
Here in Michigan we should start finding the Black Morels the last week in April if the weather stays seasonal. Basically we need about 6-7 nights when the low temperature are in the high 40′s or low 50′s, sunshine and spring rains.

April 03, 2010 Morels in April

Jim — Sun, 03 Apr 2011 23:14:10 +0000

Having grown uo in southern Indiana just 20 miles from Ohio, April always meant Morel Mushroom month. I suspect that this year the season ia still at least 1 week away in Indiana but the weather forecast is for warmer weather. In either case look on southern & western sloped woods and along the edge which gets the most sun and first warmth.
Here in Michigan May is the month for Morel Mushrooms which took me awhile to realize when I first cake to Michigan back in the mid 1960′s
By going north to some areas that have steep ski slopes I often find Morels in mid to late April. On occasion when we have had one of those early hot spells of 55-65 degree weather for a week or so I have actually found Morels in late March in southern Michigan
I believe this is going to be more of a typical season and I expect to find the first Morels up north around April 26 give or take. This season seems to be a gradually warming one which should make for a great season. Of course even in a normal season it is not uncommon to have a cold snap with a light layer of snow. Yes I have actually founf Morels with a 1/2 inch of fresh snow up north of several occasions
In any case the Morels will come and I can hardly wait. Good luck in your schrooming!
Jim

February 2011 Morel Feast

Jim — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 23:36:21 +0000

My wife and I just cooked between 100-150 Morels which we had air dried then froze in zip lock plastic bags last spring. We let them soak and rehydrate about 24 hours then squeezed out the excess water , put them into an egg/milk wash and then breaded them in cracker meal and fried the Morels to a golden brown in a mixture of 2/3rds olive oil and 1/3rd “Can’t believe it’s not butter” margerine. I used to use real butter instead but trying to keep down the ole chloresterol levels….. but butter did taste so great. We also used what is called “No-Salt” which is creted with Potasium instead of Sodium so better for blood pressure and we also use pepper on them. While not quite a good as fresh Morels, they were close enough, especially while we watched the snow pile up over 14 inches outside. We were also treated by 5 whitetail deer that were pawing through the deep snow to feast on the Rye & Oats I planted in my wildlife plot last fall.
Any questions on this process just e-mail me at morelbook@msn.com

Instant access to the Morelbook

Jim — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 19:52:57 +0000

Now as part of our 2011 site updating you can now have instant copies of the Morelbook to read online and/or to print out 2-3 copies. Check out the products page and within minutes you too can have your very own copy at a minimal cost of $4.00 and with no waiting for delivery, as it is instantly e-mailed directly to you.

2011 Morel Videos

Jim — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 19:44:03 +0000

I have some video footage from last season but have decided to hold off for now and wait for better video. There are two reasons, one is that I only shot video of the white morels since the black morel season just didn’t develop here due to the strange up and down spring we had last year and the second reason is that I need to take better footage than what I have.
So have patience and there is still a chance that I can put together some video yet this season.

2011 Morel Season

Jim — Wed, 12 Jan 2011 16:49:14 +0000

Morels in January, no way unless as I did you dried or froze some from last season which is exactly what I did. While definately not quite the same as fresh Morels, we do enjoy having a meal of them while watching the snow fly. So if you didn’t do it last year do plan on storing some for next year.
Speaking of snow, it has been my observation that in theyears we have lots of snow, we also have a great Morel season. I believe that it increases the ground moisture which they need. So 2011 should be a great season.
Any questions on freezing or drying Morels just e-mail me at morelbook@msn.com.
Jim

Starting My 2010 Hunts The First Of Next Week…

Jim — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 08:12:02 +0000

I have a number of various projects around the house that will have me completely tied up for the rest of the weekend, but by the first of next week I plan on starting my 2010 hunts. The morels are just now starting to come up around here, we still need a little bit more rain, but we’re right on the cusp of the season and I can’t wait!

From what I’m hearing from the field – other hunters, bloggers, and from the various forums that I follow – it looks like the morels are just now starting to pop. Within a few days we could be up to our eyeballs in them, which is exactly what I’m planning on…

As soon as I start seeing solid production in my usual hotspots I’ll start updating you all as to this years crop – this could be a great year for morels, if the weather is any indication its going to be very promising out there.

I’ll be sure to post what preparation method and recipe I’ve gone with once I bring home the first take of the year. More to come soon – best of luck in your hunting!

The Morels Are Coming…

Jim — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 07:59:25 +0000

We won’t lay down any specifics just yet, as to location, size, quantity, etc. but we know that the mid-Michigan morels are starting to show their faces.

A number of morel forums across the Internet are showing similar signs: the morels are coming, and it’s just a matter of time before we’re right in the heat of peak morel season.

So far our personal hunts and the “word on the street” from our fellow expert morel hunters have not shown significant yields – the morels are still very immature in many places, and conditions are not yet “perfect” for a massive haul. But it’s only a matter of time, and by matter of time it could just be a couple of weeks before there is an absolute morel explosion all across the state!

If this is your first year hunting morels, if you still haven’t quite mastered the art of the morel hunt, it might be the right time to consider honing your skills with the help of the Morel Mushroom Book. It doesn’t matter how many morels are out there and how huge and numerous they coming in – if you don’t know where to look and if you don’t know exactly what you’re looking for, you’re unlikely to find a single one this season.

It never ceases to amaze us how we’ll readily share the exact locations of our most prolific hunting spots and even after they have been supposedly been “picked clean” we’ll be able to come through after the fact and walk out with more morels than we have space for – its almost comical. Granted, with 30 plus years of experience at hunting morels, we’re pretty much guaranteed to be successful at finding fantastic mushrooms inches from where others hunters had just given it their all.

Claim your copy of the Morel Mushroom Book now, and make 2010 the year that you don’t miss any of that incredible “low hanging fruit!”

First MorelBook.com Video Coming Soon…

Jim — Sat, 03 Apr 2010 07:43:40 +0000

We’ve been so busy enjoying our delicious stores of morels that we’ve been a little behind the times with putting together our first morel video.

Fear not – that is all about to change very soon!

Our first video will be a basic introduction to the Morel Mushroom Book and what you can expect from the content contained within, but very soon we hope to add “live” video instruction from morel hunts out in the wild.

Once we’ve knocked out a few of those videos, our next goal is to take all of the accumulated knowledge of the book, coupled with J.T.’s ongoing experience to create a truly one-of-a-kind training video series. Who know: we may even have a professionally produced DVD in the works… you’ll just have to wait and see.

In the mean time, make sure you’re checking back here at morelbook.com frequently as the new content – video and print – will be coming.

We’re going to be extremely busy grabbing up our own share of this year’s morels, but we want to make sure that in 2010 you really get your fair share of the morels in your area, so check back soon and often as we’re going to do our level best to make this the year that all your friends envy your successful morel hunts.