The very well-known and sometimes misunderstood cliff potato is a type of edible fungus found across Aresia through late spring and well into autumn. It is also known by the name of cliff puffball, or purple puffball due to its mature colouration. The mushrooms are popular in the South of Sedia as a seasonal delicacy, and are an autumn staple to many people and animals in Osmen, where the fall can be quite dry.
Description
The cliff potato is a type of puffball mushroom that grows in rocky, cliff type environments, taking advantage of pockets in the rocks where debris and moisture gather. They can grow very large, growing up to 30-40cm across when fully mature, but are usually harvested well before they reach this size. When mature, they are large, bulbous and usually round in shape with a blotchy, potato-brown skin mottled with dark patches. They can very convincingly look like a potato left out on the cliffs, hence their name. The inside of the mature cliff potato is a purely brown, indicating the presence of spores. Over the series of a few weeks this flesh will all transform, there is nothing but a husk filled with toxic spores.
When younger and still edible, the inside of the fungus is an inviting off-white colour, like that of the inside of a potato.
Uses
Culinary
When young and still resembling a potato, its easy to see how people discovered the culinary opportunities presented by the fungus. It is edible only while the inside of the fungus is white, and it should not be eaten if any purple colouration can be seen in the flesh. The more purple visible, the more dangerous the mushroom; as its the purple spores that are toxic. Many fanatical fans of the mushrooms will swear that the mushrooms taste better when slightly tinted with purple, but it is not considered safe to injest any of the toxic spores, and mycologists insist they should be discarded if any purple is visible.
Despite the name and appearance of the cliff potato, the fungus doesn't make a good potato substitute, as it tends to have a fairly noticeably "truffle-like" flavour. It can be used in cooking where one would use other mushrooms or fungus, and is popular fried and paired with eggs.
Medical
The skin of the cliff potato is a very fine membrane with a dry, hardy side and a moist, fleshy side. It can be peeled off of the fruiting body and used as a temporary wound cover, as the outside is quite hydrophobic and repels bacteria. This is very temporary solution, but makes an excellent emergency cover for burns or other easily infected wounds.
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