I grew up along the Oregon-Washington I-5 corridor. Unfortunately, food-wise, the PNW is BEST known for amazing seafood, shellfish, Tillamook cheese, and beer. Since I don’t drink and I’m vegan, that narrows it down a bit. OK, a lot. There’s always marionberries – but they’re out of season… and hazelnuts (OK, mom, filberts), but it isn’t really something you can build a whole entree around.

What else do we have? Umm… foraged mushrooms? I wasn’t able to pick up chanterelles or other super-fancy “wild” mushrooms this time around, but I did get a variety of ‘shrooms, which I seasoned and roasted all together.

Then, in a vague nod to my boyfriend’s hometown of Santa Cruz, I prepared the fixings for some nice tacos to put the mushrooms in – I spiced them with cumin, coriander, and cayenne, so I also made some simple black beans, lime juice-marinated shredded cabbage, guacamole, and fresh-pressed corn tortillas.