Are zombie mushrooms real, a threat to mankind? A must read edition from your fave mushroom farmers. Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ Νβ€Œ 

It is officially spooky season! The leaves are changing colors and soon will be falling. This shift also relates to our mushrooms. Who has missed the King Oysters?! Promise you’ll make some time to see us in-between your pumpkin carving, apple picking, corn mazing, veggie canning, Renaissance fairing and leaf blowing? 😊🀞
 

Farmer’s Markets

Get ready for the full embrace of fall, introducing back into the mix White Oyster, King Oyster, and Black Pearl Oysters. Of course their availability will vary throughout the month, so make sure to visit us at every market opportunity you can. In addition, we will also have Blue Oysters, Lion's Mane, Comb Tooth, Chestnut, Shiitake and Eggs.

Hyde Park Farmers Market every Sunday from 9:30 am - 1 pm @ Hyde Park Square

Findlay Market Farmers Market Saturday from 8am - 2pm on October 7th and 21st @1801 Race St., Cincinnati, OH 45202
 

You might be asking yourself, β€œAren’t Rich Life Farm mushrooms grown indoors, why would seasonality effect them?” This is a good question! We do grow our mushrooms indoors and we climate control each room. And mushrooms are fast growers, so they consume oxygen at a rapid rate. To keep up with respiration rate of the mushrooms, we have to constantly filter in fresh air from the outdoors into the facility. When the temperatures are hot, the AC unit cannot keep up. So even within our controlled space, there is room for Mother nature’s influence. She always finds a way, so protect her and eat local food!
 

Zombie Mushrooms

You may have watched The Last of Us or at least heard the buzz about it β€” a world where Cordyceps fungi infects the human race and turns them into brain eating zombies. Could this happen?

Probably not, at least for thousands of years. Yet, Cordyceps are just as spooky.

Cordyceps do live inside insects. Cordyceps, being used as a general term for fungi within the entire Ophiocordycipitaceae family made up of various species. Different species of cordyceps target different species of insects.

One, Ophiocordyceps unilateralis, infects ants. It penetrates an ant’s exoskeletons and takes control of their nervous systems, obtaining complete power over the ant’s body. The fungi forces the ant to climb up a nearby object, like a limb, to carry the body high up from the forest floor. At this height, the fungi triggers the ant to anchor it’s body with it’s jaw. The host has completed the fungus’ first task.

Now the hosts purpose is food. The fungi will consume the internal organs and nutrients from the dead body to create energy for the fungi’s reproduction. It grows the fruiting body, the mushroom, out of the ant’s head and releases spores to rain down on other victims below. And so, the cycle continues. Pretty genius and pretty gory.

And humans consume some of these mushrooms, appropriate for us as apex predators. Ophiocordyceps sinensis, commonly referred to as Cordyceps, has been used in Eastern medicine for years improving energy levels, lung health, heart health, libido, and others (study). In the wild, this fungi infects the caterpillar of the Ghost moth in parts of Tibet and China (pictured below). Fear not, Cordyceps can be cultivated on standard mushroom substrate with no caterpillars harmed.

In conclusion, zombie mushrooms are real! Yet, the human body temperatures are higher than insects and our nervous systems are a bit more complex, so we do NOT think this family of fungi will evolve into targeting human hosts any time soon. Do you agree or do you like to fascinate about zombie apocalypses too much?
 

Reishi Update

Look at the Reishi now! They are conking out. That means their top is flattening out, like a shelf. And they perfectly matching the colors of fall. Who is excited?! 🀚🀚🀚
 

Upcoming Events

We have two events this month with the Cincinnati Nature Center. We will oover the basics of mushroom foraging, then venture out into the woods for practice. Lastly, we will finish with a crash course in the kitchen about our favorite mushroom preparations.

There are two opportunities to make it with limited spots available. Make sure you secure your spot today.

Saturday, October 14th from 3:00pm - 5:00pm | Click here for Tickets

Saturday, October 28th from 1:00pm - 53:00pm | Click here for Tickets
 

Mushroom of the Month: Lion’s Mane

It’s time we talked about Lion’s Mane. This delicious brain food with wacky fur-like appearance is one of the most popular mushrooms. So what’s the deal? Let’s get into it.

Lion’s Mane, Hericium erinacea, is widely cultivated for both culinary and medicinal applications across the world, with records dating back thousands of years. The long tendrils of the mushroom resembles the long hairs from a mane of a lion, earning it’s common name.

To use in the kitchen, Lion’s Mane should be the star of the meal. It tastes similar to crab or lobster, lying on the sweeter side of umami flavor. It’s rich flavor lends itself nicely to be cut and seared like a steak or to be ripped apart into small lumps for a variety of cooking. Have you had the pleasure of tearing a Lion’s Mane mushroom apart? It is so satisfying.

Besides it tasting delicious, you may obtain health benefits from this mushroom. Nutrients from Lion’s Mane has potential to fortify the connections (synapses) between the neurons in our brain and support nerve impulse transmission, which can improve short and long-term memory (study). Also, Lion’s Mane may increase the rate of development for healthy neurons in the hippocampus, the part of our brain that regulates emotions. Which is prospected to balance out moods and improve feelings of anxiety and depression (study). There is so much more; possibilities it reinforces the immune system, aids digestion, supports cardiovascular health, and can even be beneficial to pets. Have you experience the Lion’s Mane tincture, yet? Now available in 1 ounce or 2 ounce size, there is no better time to go for it.

β€˜Tis the season to start looking for wild Lion’s Mane growing in our area. They grow on dead or dying hardwood trees in a mass of large white, tendril-y goodness. There are look-a-like mushrooms that you should be aware of, as always forage with a professional mushroom guide.

Lion’s Mane can easily become a staple in your diet if you get it fresh from us each week. Try a new recipe, maybe the Lion’s Mane β€˜Crab’ Cake recipe on our website or the skewers below.

 

Recipe: Spicy Cumin Lion’s Mane Skewers

What you need:

  • Large bag of Lion’s Mane mushrooms

  • sugar

  • water

  • cooking oil

Batter

  • 2 tablespoons flour

  • 3 tablespoons water

Spice Mix

  • Β½ tablespoons cumin seeds

  • 1 tablespoon cumin powder plus extra for topping

  • 1 tablespoon chili powder plus extra for topping

  • 1 tablespoon sesame seeds

  • Β½ teaspoon salt plus extra for topping

How to:

  1. Fill a large pot or pan with water (about 6-8 cups depending on the pan size) and bring it to a boil. Then, add Β½ teaspoon of sugar into the hot water.

  2. Use your fingers to tear mushrooms into larger than bite-sized pieces. Then, add mushrooms and cook for about 3 minutes until slightly tender.

  3. Drain out the water. Once cooled, using your palms, gently squeeze mushrooms to remove all the liquid and transfer to a bowl.

  4. Meanwhile, whisk together flour and water into a thin paste, set aside.

  5. Rub mushrooms with cumin seeds, cumin powder, chili powder, and salt until all mushrooms are coated.

  6. Add the batter and sesame seeds, then use your fingers to coat the mushrooms until well combined.

  7. Thread a few pieces of mushrooms (about 4) onto the skewer. Repeat until all mushrooms are done.

  8. Set a large shallow pan (big enough to fit the skewer) over medium-low heat. Cover the bottom with a thin layer of oil (see video or picture above for reference).

  9. Carefully lower the skewer onto the hot oil.

  10. Cook until all sides turn golden brown and a thin crust forms, turning occasionally. Please make sure to maintain a light sizzle over medium-low heat and fully cook through the mushrooms.

  11. To prepare another spice mix for topping, combine 1 tablespoon of cumin powder and chili powder with ΒΌ teaspoon of salt.

  12. Sprinkle onto the cooked mushrooms before serving. Alternatively, serve the skewers with chili oil and sediment for a spicier kick.

Nothing screams β€˜party’ like a platter full of mushroom skewers!
 

Partner Spotlight: Al Posto

Most of you know where Hyde Park Square is. We met of lot of you all there. Have you dined at Al Posto yet? Take a step off the street and escape to Italy. Al Posto offers modern Italian inspired cuisine with sommelier selected wines and pairings.

They focus on sourcing local ingredients and all pasta is handmade in house, the proper way. The atmosphere matches the chic feeling of the food, making it a perfect spot for your next family or friend outing. In fact, Al Posto translates to β€œat the spot,” confirming that it should be next on your list.

Plus, the patio would be perfect during this time of year. Open for dinner Tuesday- Saturday. Reservations recommended.
 Where to find Rich Life Mushrooms 
 

Thanks for reading!

Let the mushrooms inspire you this season. Carve mushroom jack o’lanterns, dress up as a mushroom zombie or make spooky-looking fungi snacks, but most importantly, don’t forget to share the photos with us. Happy fall, y’all!

Instagram: @richlifefarm

Facebook: Rich Life Farm and Fungi

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Rich Life Farm and Fungi

Rich Life Farm & Fungi, info@richlifefarm.com, 1144 Ten Mile Rd, New Richmond, United States

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