The deciduous trees are shedding their leaves and the air is starting to feel a little crisp. Mushrooms, pistachios and persimmons are in abundance at this time of year.

Mushrooms, ‘meat for vegetarians’ as they’ve been called, are one of nature’s great gifts. There are literally thousands of varieties and a great many are edible. They grow in dark, damp places and feed on rotting, decomposing organic matter, and can be collected in autumn, preferably after some rain. They store well for a few days in a paper bag in the fridge, never in plastic, but are at their best eaten on the day they’re picked. Some varieties can be cultivated and these make up a large part of what’s available all year round at greengrocers. As the name implies, Pine Mushrooms are mainly found in pine forests. They can be quite large and, on large specimens, the gills on the underside must be removed as they tend to impart an unwanted, bitter flavour. Pine mushrooms, although perfectly safe to eat raw, are best cooked. Slice them and panfry in a little butter, or bake them, stuffed or plain.

At the same time as pine mushrooms make an appearance, pistachios are ready to be picked. The fruit of a tree of Asian origin, they are encased in a reddish shell and dull outer husk which peels away to reveal a bright green nut. Although they can be eaten fresh, they are generally salted and dried. They are one of the great snacks in the Middle East and are a classic flavouring for gelato (though the poisonous looking green ones are usually artificially coloured). They grow well in Sicily, from where quality pistachio paste is exported around the world to produce rich tasting gelato of a subtle, almost olive green, colour.

This is also the best time of year to eat persimmons, or as it is called in its native Japan ‘kaki’. Unfortunately, if we try persimmons at all, we tend to try to eat them when they’re hard and under ripe and the taste and texture is usually enough to put us off ever trying them again. This is unfortunate, as a ripe Persimmon is heavenly, soft, gelatinous and sweet. Try it, someday, suck the sweet fleshy cheeks out of the fruit and don’t eat the skin.