Alissimon with the 11-pound mushroom – credit Alissimon Minnitt, released

If you’re the kind of person who likes foraging for mushrooms, you know that some edible species can be easily confused with poisonous doppelgangers.

But after first spotting a giant puffball mushroom, the thing you’re most likely to confuse it with is a football.

From England’s Buckinghamshire comes the story of a woman who has fed her family for a whole week on the meat of a single shroom, a giant puffball (Calvatia gigantea), that she found on a walk in a field near her home in North Marston.

“Around seven years ago, my dad and I went for a walk and encountered what we thought to be a football, but on closer inspection and some ­research we realised it was actually a giant puffball mushroom,” Alissimon Minnitt wrote on her Instagram next to a truly extraordinary picture.

“Today when I was visiting we were on a walk again, reminiscing about this experience out of the blue and then in the next field we spot a white dot. it couldn’t possibly be … could it? It was indeed a giant ­puffball, but not any giant puffball, an 11lb giant giant puffball. My arms are weak but my spirit is strong.

As a vegetarian, Minnitt knows the value of mushrooms in her diet. While most home cooks would struggle to make a fungus the starring role 7 nights in a row, she had learned plenty of recipes from her mother who was a “star” in preparing them while she was growing up.

Giant puffball pizza – credit Alissimon Minnitt, released

“It’s got quite a bland taste but it absorbs flavor really well. So as a bread substitute, in that case, it actually works really well,” she told The Times of London, who used it to make schnitzel, curry, pasta, and meatloaf, grilled slices like a steak, and even as the base for a pizza. “That was a really weird one, I wasn’t expecting it to be nice but it was amazing.”

After the week’s worth of meals, her family was “mushroomed out.” She put some pieces in the freezer and took the remaining 2 pounds and buried it in the soil where she found specimen.

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According to the Times, the spores of Calvatia gigantea can cause a certain lung disease if inhaled, although they’re also recorded as being a folk remedy for nosebleeds. For this reason, mature specimens are to be avoided.

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The giant puffball produces spores internally, and blows them out like a sponge as it begins the downward slope of its life cycle. This is in contrast to typical toadstools which release them down through their gills.

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