And they call it Truffle Love

I’ve become obsessed with truffles.  Can there be anything more intoxicating?   Decidedly not.   A great bottle of wine does not infuse your kitchen and dining room with the aroma that a truffle does.  One or two shavings and your senses are awakened in anticipation of what is to come.  What will this black gold be gracing today?  Or if you are fortunate what will those ever so sought after white truffles from Alba steal the spotlight from?

Is the obsession with these little beauties due to the fact that I cannot find a fresh truffle to save my life in the desert?  Was it first sparked by a dining experience in Santa Fe at Trattoria Nostrani?  (Which I completely now understand why it is a fragrance free environment – why would you want someone’s perfume or cologne to distract you from the fragrance of your food – namely the smell that a truffle shaving gives off as it falls ever so gently on that bed of fresh pasta.)  Or those glorious dining experiences in  Italy?

No matter what the reason is, I’m on a mission.  Truffled eggs, fresh pasta with truffles, truffle risotto, veal chops with truffle shavings.  You name it  I’m truffling it.  I’m also on a mission to find the perfect wine pairing for my truffles.

This has become a bit challenging now that the winter truffle season has drawn to an end.  That and the fact that to get fresh truffles into the desert they have to be shipped priority overnight and that is no small price tag.  It is however completely worth the indulgence.    So the questions I’m left with now is “should I try the flash frozen truffles”, and “what about the Oregon Truffles”?

So in the between fresh truffle season, I’ve decided to order some flash frozen truffles and test them out.  I’ve also found a great truffle and cream sauce from Urbani that is great!

As for Oregon truffles, I’m tempted to try but need to do more research.  There is a part of me that wonders how a truffle from Oregon could even begin to compare to one from Italy.

If you are looking for your own truffle love, a source I’ve found is www.urbani.com.