Black Trumpets

No, it's not a musical instrument, though you may wish to sing its praises.  It is variously known as Black Chanterelles, Trumpets, Trompe de la Morts (trumpets of death - those Frenchies have such a sense of humor), and officially Craterellus Fallax.  By any name, it's one of my favorite wild mushrooms.  I love the slightly pungent and spicy flavor, especially good with eggs and pasta, and the fact that it loses very little flavor when dried.  When there is a good trumpet year, you can come home with bags full, dry them and enjoy them all year long, until the beginning of the next rainy season.  For us in Mendocino County, they are close to the last wild mushroom we'll pick before the dry season.  Happily, it's a good year for black chanterelles, as it was for white and yellow chanterelles.  Here they are ready to be washed.