The Urban Pantheist

Giant puffball Calvatia gigantea* is considered a common mushroom, but you wouldn't guess that by most people's astonished reaction to finding one. These things are dramatically huge, from grapefruit sized up to four feet across--most of the ones I've seen were mistaken for deflated volleyballs at first. It used to be assumed that giant puffballs grew from a fungus feeding on decomposing matter in the soil, but current mycology seems to be leaning toward the fungus being symbiotic with the roots of certain grasses. People who like to eat things they find outside get very excited when they find one of these. If you cut one in half, and there is no color or texture, just a white homogenous mass, then it is safe to eat. Some also claim these are delicious, but I have yet to prove it myself. So far my experiments have yielded a dish with the texture of french toast but with the unmistakeable earthiness of mushroom.



* "Bald giant"