The Cep (Boletus Edulis) is arguably the most prized wild mushroom in Europe. As with many other bolete mushrooms, it is characterised by a chestnut brown cap and solid stem. The underside of the cap is white when young, but yellows with time to a sponge-like appearance (as opposed to many other mushrooms which have gills).

Find out more about identifying ceps (and other boletes) at MushroomExpert.com

The cep is typically found in the autumn months in mature oak, birch, larch and beech woodland. The small, young cep are best eaten on the day of picking fried in butter, garlic and a sprinkling of fresh flat leaf parsely and served with crusty bread. Older cep are best sliced and dried to intensify the flavour and reconstituted later in soups and stews to add a rich savoury flavour. Dried cep are readily available in supermarkets nowadays and are a classic ingredient in risottos and pierogi (Polish mushroom pasties).