Mushroom adventures

We've reached the part in Botany where we learn about fungi, particularly mushrooms. Today was all about playing with mushrooms and really looking at them. I had bought a selection of mushrooms when I was grocery shopping yesterday. We had portobellos, oysters, and alba clamshells to look at. 

These are the oyster mushrooms.

We identified their parts including cap shape, gill type, texture, and stem structure. Then we attempted to make spore prints.

I say attempted because it was not successful, despite following the instructions in our mushroom books. Oh well. 

Finally, we chopped them up and sauteed them to have for lunch.

Y. decided to cook some noodles to put the mushrooms on, making enough for H. and R. as well. She also added in some leftovers from last night to it.

Now, in fill disclosure, I am really not a fan of mushrooms to eat. I will eat them, but I certainly don't seek them out. I want to like them. I think they're cool. But I'm really not there yet. Thinking back to my recent post about food and pickiness, here is something that I didn't add but should have. If I am asking my children to try food they are unsure of or don't care for, then it is only fair to require this sane thing of myself. This is why I ate one each of the different types of mushrooms at lunch today. My children know I don't particularly care for them, but as part of the family, I need to stretch myself out of my food comfort zone and not require this of just my children.

The other thing we did was to get out grow-your-own-mushroom kit that I had ordered. It is promised to grow shitake mushrooms. First we had to soak the log.

Then after a couple of hours we put it on a tray and tented it with plastic to keep in the humidity.

We'll see what happens and if we can avoid the dreaded green mold the instructions were so emphatic about avoiding.