The Diamond of the Kitchen – The Truffle

Umbria is a region in Italy synonymous with truffles. These are the beautiful ‘diamonds’ I have bought back with me.

"tartufo estivo"
© tartufo estivo

The white truffle from Piedmont in Italy is the most highly sought after and the most expensive of all the truffles. The next in the line is the black truffle which is named after the Périgord region in France. The black summer truffle is the one from the region of Italy we were on holiday in. They are highly valued for their culinary uses but do not have as strong an aroma as the black (winter) truffle. They grow in symbiosis with the hazel nut trees in the region. These weigh between 20 to 30 grams each and are about 4cm in diameter. We have three perfect gems preserved in brine. These cost me €10 (R100) but we saw them for sale for €40 in the old walled city of Assisi. There were special truffle cutters but we did not get ourselves one of those. The truffles in our bottle have to be consumed within 7 days of opening so I am going to line up the recipes before I open the bottle.

Tandy

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15 thoughts on “The Diamond of the Kitchen – The Truffle

  1. Oooooh T – don’t forget to put them in with your eggs for a bit – they will flavour your eggs – and keep the jar they are in – don’t wash it – just add some extra virgin olive oil – oooooooh i just loooove truffles on pasta!!! xxx enjoy!!! xxxx jan

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