The air’s getting crisp, farmer’s markets are moving indoors, and the ovens are warming up—it must be Thanksgiving season! From savory sides to show-stopping mains, our fungi are ready to make your holiday spread unforgettable. Gobble up this Rich Life Report for announcements, recipes, and our Thanksgiving mushroom pre-order form. 💌⬇️

Feeling grateful

As we wrap up another outdoor market season and head indoors for the winter, we want to take a moment to give thanks. To our fellow growers and makers, thank you for the hard work, early mornings, and shared laughs that make every market special. To the organizers who keep things running smoothly rain or shine, we’re so grateful for your dedication. And to all of you who shop local and support small farms—thank you from the bottom of our mushroom-loving hearts. You make this community thrive, and we’re so thankful to share it with you! 🍄💖

Thanksgiving Mushrooms

Inoculate yourself and loved ones with flavorful, nutritious food this year and bring fungi (back) into the mix. We are offering bulk orders of one pound or more for pickup at either Farmer’s Market the week before Thanksgiving.

Please fill out this Google Form to reserve your order today. You will need to specify quantity, pick-up location and your preferred payment option. You can pay online or upon pick up.

If you have any questions or complications with the pre-order form, please do not hesitate to reach out.

Thanksgiving Recipes

Here are a few mushroom-forward recipes perfect for your Thanksgiving table:

These are just a few ideas for your Thanksgiving spread (or any mealtime). A mushroom mixture will work best for all these recipes. Your mushrooms will shine no matter which you choose!

Bye, Golden Oysters

Sad news, we are discontinuing the cultivation of Golden Oysters. This past summer an article came out in New York Times about the invasive nature of Golden Oyster mushrooms in North America (link here). We took a deep dive into the topic and found this study that really solidified our decision. Researchers found less species diversity of native fungal species in logs containing Golden Oyster mycelium than in logs that did not contain Golden Oyster mycelium, meaning this exotic fungus may be outcompeting our native species for resources.

Even though we grow the mushrooms inside, the Golden Oysters spores may be able to find their way from the mushroom barn into the air outside landing who-knows-where New Richmond. We also compost our spent mushroom blocks, which means live mycelium is being introduced into the forest. For integrity and diversity of our natural fungi species, we will no longer have the beloved Golden Oysters.

Their delicious flavor, beautiful color, and joy they brought to the kitchen will live long in our hearts. Shout out to you all who asked us about the topic, good job at being on top of current sustainability efforts and mushroom news. Our kind of people!

Mushroom of the Month: Queen Oyster

Queen Oysters are here! Queen Oysters (Pleurotus ostreatus), also called Black Pearl Oysters, Shimofuri hiratake, or Marbled oyster is a popular variety that brings color to the table at the winter farmer’s markets.

This mushroom is a cross between a European oyster variety and a variety of Japanese king oyster mushroom developed through a process called dedikaryotization. This process is extremely complicated, but here’s our best effort to explain it as simply as possible; This process splits the genetic material of two individual fungi (AB and CD) in half (A and B and C and D) and allows each of those halves to be combined with half from the other individual to create a new individual (AC, AD, BC, BD). This allows interspecies breeding that would otherwise not be possible naturally. The result is a mushroom that’s not only beautiful to grow but also consistently produces firm, hearty clusters with impressive versatility in the kitchen.

When cooked, the Queen Oyster develops a rich, savory flavor often described as umami-forward with mild nutty undertones. Its dense, meaty texture makes it a favorite among chefs and home cooks looking for a satisfying plant-based protein substitute. You can shred it apart with a fork, slice into scallop-sized pieces, cross-hatch and marinate the mushroom, or do a simple slice-n-dice.

On the medicinal side of things, consuming Queen Oysters have demonstrated antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, and even hypoglycaemic and hypolipidaemic effects. A systematic review of human intervention trials found that intake of this mushroom may improve glucose and lipid metabolism as well as modestly reduce blood pressure. Study.

Try this mushroom for your next bolognese, mushroom chili or BBQ protein!

Partner Spotlight: Retail Stores

The holiday season is quickly approaching. How did this summer fly by so fast, right?! If farmer’s markets slip your mind, here are retail stores you can visit for any last-minute mushroom purchases.

Central:

Madison’s at Findlay Market | Open: Tuesday - Sunday

ETC Produce and Provisions at Findlay Market | Open Tuesday - Sunday

ETC - Walnut Hills | Open seven days a week!

East Side:

Pipkins Market in Blue Ash | Open Tuesday - Sunday

Daylily Deli in Columbia Tusculum | Open everyday

Farm Fun Fact

At the end of each newsletter we reward you for making it this far with a random farm fact. This month, I share the mushrooms I grew at home! Even though I’m around mushrooms all day at work, I still can’t get enough! I harvested a small yield of Blue Oysters and Pink Oysters. At home I grow in a monotube from Northspore that I won in a contest. If you have fruits of your own, please share pictures next time you visit us at the market.

Grateful for you!

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