Nope, when we were kids my grandparents told us that they were horse farts!

That would certainly put me off eating them! That, and the fact that they look repulsive.

I have eaten the puffballs but the type we eat are the giant puffballs they grow apart (loners) and are usually 3-12 inches across. They must be picked at the growing stage while firm and totally white .
Sliced and fried in butter is the way we eat them.


''Horse farts'' love it

This flock of Giant Puffballs is too far advanced for human consumption. I have tried eating a small one, fried in olive oil. It smelled heavenly while cooking, but lacked flavor. I'll have to try frying in butter - thanks for the tip, Cinda!

Wow
Those are beautiful
Isn't it so cool to come upon them while walking the woods, Makes me smile

Oh I meant to say if they have no taste add a bit of garlic when frying they are better than escargot because they are not slimy/ chewy.

Also If you have a good scampi (shrimp) recipe you can cut in strips (like fat french fries) and use the puffball

Great suggestions, Cinda!

Now, I'm not at all sure if the following fungus is edible or not. I can't find an ID for it! Anybody know what it is?

??Maybe a stinkhorn?????

Looks weird like a snake hatching.

Maybe we could make up a name for it.

You mean like Sam or Wilbur?

Yes, it's definitely a boy! Phil the Fungus?

Definitely a boy

Let's keep it clean on the screen (but not necessarily in our heads).

I concur with Wilbur (Willy for short).

I guess nobody shares my British sense of humour!

Here's some brackets. I think the small ones are Turkey Tail, but what are the ones that look like caramels dipped in cream?

Oh June, I happen to adore the Brit sense of humor. Nothing like a Brit for finding humor in everything!
Absolutely loved Benny Hill.

It's the French sense of humor I don't understand.

Sometimes I can "get" British humor and sometimes it flies right over my head. But then again, some of the supposedly funny movies & TV shows produced in this country don't seem funny to me, either. I think it's a highly individual thing on humor, more than the country.

My sense of humor is nothing compared to my DH's. He was well known at his place of employment for doing outrageous things. He once attended an upper management meeting carrying a stuffed animal toy - and refused to let the Vice President play with it.

I have one more fungus pic for you. This is my absolute favorite fungus, and it appears every fall in the same hollow tree (a still-living American beech). It is a Tooth Fungus, but the name doesn't do it justice. I think it looks like a frozen waterfall, or maybe an elaborate chandelier.

Wow! That's an amazing fungus. They can be so very intricate & exact.