Puff of perfection

SIR – Gilly Jennings (Letters, August 30) mentions finding early field mushrooms and puffballs, and reports being given an edible fungus weighing 4lb 12oz.

Here in Bath, at a farmers’ market last Saturday, two giant puffballs were on display, each the size of a football.

I bought a slice for £1. It was perfectly circular, 14 inches in diameter and just under half an inch thick. Two hours later, tossed in salted butter and crushed garlic, it was a feast fit for a king.

To my regret, I learnt that these marvels appear only every five years or so.

Bath, Somerset