Cep (Boletus edulis) is one of the most reassuring edible mushroom that you will find in the UK. It has a distinctive appearance, few things to confuse it with and very tasty. It’s a highly-prized mushroom in the kitchen and can be found across the Northern Hemisphere. For the novice mushroom forager it’s a great species to look out for and the taste is almost out of proportion to how little effort goes into finding it – Ceps (‘Penny Bun’ in England) are quite common and come in a variety of sizes.
From early August onwards any of my work in the mountains of England, Wales and Scotland is often accompanied by the action of grazing on these tiny purple blobs as I work my way through the heather and scrub. Bilberries (the most-used common name, but lots of regional variations exist – see above) are easy to find and identify, and can be eaten straight from the bush with no problems and few misidentification worries. The fruits can be picked easily by hand and turned into a variety of jams, pies and other fruit preserves.
The first thing we need to get out of the way here is that there is an element of risk involved in eating EVERYTHING. That's food from supermarkets, served to you in restaurants, grown in your own back garden or picked from the soil or plucked from a rock somewhere on the Snowdonia coastline. Improper handling, preparation and sometimes just bad luck all have a role to play and we can never guarantee that our food is 'safe'. There are a few very good reasons why wild shellfish, and particularly bivalves, have a reputation for potentially being 'dodgy'.
In the past weeks the news has featured several stories on UK knife crimes, knife law and the perception of knives as weapons as well as tools. This was followed by the announcement of a new Offensive Weapons Bill which will begin the process of changing of what is considered a legal knife, where they can be used/carried by the general public and how they can be acquired.