It’s the foraging season for mushrooms, one of the greatest seasonal delights for any foodie. But there is a dark side. Britain’s mushroom hunter-gatherers are falling sick like never before. The reason is that the popularity of television programmes encouraging mushroom picking has sent wannabe foodies into the wilds with not enough knowledge to know the difference between a edible mushroom and a toxic one.

Cases of mushroom poisoning, which can range from cramps to dizziness and hallucinations, have jumped with over 84 cases reported in the last month alone. There are thousands of species of fungi, a lot of them potentially harmful. Our advice is to get better informed, and preferably attend a class run by an expert, before rushing out into the wild with just some photo’s from a cookbook.

The bottom line is (we shouldn't have to repeat this): Never eat anything unless you're 100% sure what it is. Some help:

http://www.wildfooduk.com/mushroom-guides/

What’s the weirdest kitchen utensil you’ve ever come across?

How about a banana slicer? There’s one on the market that cuts five slices per squeeze of a handle. Cool or plain daft? Well, if you have small kids, it kind of makes sense as it allows them to make their own breakfasts and snacks since the dull blade makes it pretty safe to use. Then there are the asparagus peelers we’ve spotted. These utensils not only peel the asparagus, but also snip the tough ends. And, wait, some can even be used for green beans and sugar snap peas.

Both items are available for sale today, but what about some of yesteryear’s nifty inventions? Like the leak-proof hot-dog roll invented in the 1920s (never seen it, to be honest) or the car food tray from the 1940s (not seen that either). Our favourite, though, is the combo music-box-drinking-straw invented in the 1960s by one Arthur Barr who said it would encourage picky kids to consume whatever beverages parents gave them. Biggest problem was someone had to turn the handle of the music-box-straw to play the tune that encouraged the kid to suck the straw…

Pro advice on kitchen utensils: 

• If it does what a knife does – you should probably use a knife

• Keep it simple – complicated utensils complicate the job at hand

• Buy quality – the right stuff lasts for generations

Thinking about serving your dinner guests celery, cilantro/coriander, rocket/rucola, broccoli, horseradish or fennel? Then you should also think about giving them the chance to kindly say thanks but no thanks...

Some people find the above ingredients – literally – hard to swallow. Not because they are more spoilt and querulous than more forgiving dinner guests, but more likely because they have a genetically different setup of taste buds. (Some of them can, of course, be both spoilt and equipped with sensitive taste buds...)

Being aware of this might save you some trouble. Bon appetit!

For more info:

Cilantro Haters...