Stress Free Cooking
by
Barbara Seelig Brown's
Lifestyle Designs

barbara@stressfreecooking.com

2002 was a great year for Truffles
By Barbara Seelig Brown

Truffles are arriving from Italy and you can enjoy them now! It has been an exceptionally good year for truffles in Italy - the weather has been favorable with lots of rain, unfortunately bad for the vines, but good for the truffles and good for us as prices will be favorable. For those that are intoxicated by the perfume of the truffle, this is indeed an exciting time. Many have trouble describing them but words and phrases such as unlike anything else, earthy, unique, rich, and heavenly have frequently been used. We can thank Giacomo Moira for bringing the truffle to the New World. The truffle was first introduced in 1929 in Alba, Italy.

Found mainly in the northern region of Italy known as Piedmont, there are two varieties of truffles. The black truffle is available in the summer and the white, also known as white diamonds, are available in winter. The truffle hunter is known as the trifolau. Today dogs are used to find the tubers, which are rather hard to find as they grow 3-12 inches underground near the roots of hazelnut, beech, chestnut and oak trees. Pigs were once used as truffle hunters but it was extremely difficult to get the truffle away from the pig so today dogs are used. Dogs have shown that they are less possessive and also have 300 times the sense of smell as a human. The trifolau is very secretive about his "truffle spot" and must be careful not to even let his tracks be noticed.

Truffling is highly regulated and the rights to hunt for truffles are sometimes owned by someone other than the land owner. Coupled with the scarcity of this food and the long maturation time, it is no wonder that truffle season is something to anticipate and celebrate. It is exciting to watch the trifolau and his dog hunt for truffles - the dog gets just as excited as the trifolau when a truffle is found! It's a beautiful sight!

You can experience the taste of truffles as prepared at these fine restaurants:

Chef Edward Stone of The Bernards Inn in Bernardsville will be offering menu specials such as Fettuccine with a light cream sauce and Risotto with white truffles shaved tableside.

Chef Allan Schanbacher of Pierre's in Harding Township will be serving truffle specials as well. His favorite presentation is to serve a velvety scrambled egg on toast with chervil and a shaving of fresh truffles. If the eggs are cooked slowly over a water bath, they are softer and are then a better vehicle to carry the truffle flavor. Chef Allan's recipe is as follows:

Scrambled Eggs with White Truffles
1 white truffle
6 large organic eggs
1/3 cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste
12 toast points
Three days before serving, store the truffle and eggs together in an airtight container in the refrigerator. The eggs will pick up the flavor or the truffle during this time.

When you're ready to start cooking, clean the truffle with a soft brush; do not use water. Beat the eggs in a stainless steel bowl with the cream, salt and pepper until blended but not frothy. Set the bowl over a pot of simmering water, making sure that the bottom of the bowl does not touch the water. Whisking slowly all the time, cook the eggs until thickened and custardy. Stir in the butter and taste for seasoning.

Transfer the eggs to warm individual serving bowls and shave the truffle over them (use a truffle shaver or a sharp vegetable peeler). Serve with toast points.
(Reprinted with Chef Allan's permission).

Executive Chef Fernando Zapata of Tre Vigne Restaurant in Basking Ridge is serving Veal Ravioli with Truffle Essence, Risotto with Ox Tail and White Truffle, Cod & OxTail with Truffle Oil, and Lamb Shanks with Potato Puree and White Truffle Oil.

Chef James Laird of Restaurant Serenade in Chatham will be serving Risotto with White Truffles on his tasting menus.

Toni Caristi of Artisan, Bread, Wine & Cheese in Chester recommends wines that pick up the earthy characteristic of the truffles. Your best choices would be Barolos, older burgundies and rhone wines.

To purchase your own truffles and prepare for dining at home, you can visit Wegmans at 724 Route 202 South in Bridgewater. They sell truffles in the produce section of the stores. Currently black truffles are on sale at $299 per pound as opposed to the usual market price of $799. White truffles will run $1500 per pound. Remember however that a truffle, which is generally about the size of golf ball, weighs in less than an ounce. One goes a very long way.

Truffles should be stored in the refrigerator in one of two ways; you can store it in arborio rice or with clean dry eggs in the shell. If you are storing it short term, and if you intend to serve it with risotto, the arborio works well, but if it going to be for more than a few days, you might consider storing with eggs in an airtight container. The arborio can absorb some of the truffle moisture and while this makes for flavorful rice, it takes away from the freshness of the truffle. You should also consider purchasing a truffle slicer for about $25 at gourmet shops. The truffle slicer ensures that you do not destroy the integrity of this valuable ingredient by producing thin, even slices.

Other items that can be purchased to get the essence of truffles are cheeses, oils, and butters. These are excellent served as condiments to a grilled piece of chicken or fish, dirzzled over risotto, pasta or scrambled eggs. Jody Adams of Rialto Restaurant in Boston, serves traditional Bistecca alla fiorentina with an added drizzle of truffle oil. Bistecca all fiorentina is a steak grilled with olive oil and lemon. A drizzle of truffle oil is an added luxury. The steak can be served atop a salad dressing made with lemon, olive oil, truffle oil and Parmigiano Reggiano. Remember when cooking with these ingredients that the delicate flavor of the truffle should not be overpowered by strong or gaudy food preparations.

ŠBarbara Seelig Brown, all rights reserved

Stress Free Cooking by Barbara Seelig Brown's Lifestyle Designs

Stress Free Cooking
by
Barbara Seelig Brown's
Lifestyle Designs