Ingredients:

1 [...]]]>

This potato salad is a version of my favorite French potato salad from the classic “Silver Palate” cookbook.  I toned down the dressing and added black truffle oil.  The original recipe calls for ¼ pound of bacon.  The summer truffles pair well with the more refined flavor of pancetta, but certainly bacon could be used.

Ingredients:

1 pound new or red-skinned potatoes, quartered

3 oz pancetta, diced

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

½ cup finely chopped shallots

¼ cup chopped parsley

2 ounces summer black truffles, sliced thin

Vinaigrette:

1 ½ tablespoons Champagne or white wine vinegar

½ teaspoon minced garlic

1 teaspoon minced fresh thyme

½ teaspoon sea salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground pepper

3 tablespoons black truffle oil

Drop the quartered potatoes into a pot of cold salted water.  Bring to a boil and cook about 10 minutes until the potatoes are tender but still pretty firm.

Meanwhile, sauté the pancetta in olive oil until some of the fat has rendered and the pancetta is slightly crisp (Bacon may be substituted, in which case no olive oil is needed).  Remove pancetta (or bacon) and leave the fat in the pan.  Add the chopped shallots to the hot oil and sauté until the shallots are tender and golden but not too brown.  Set aside.

To make the vinaigrette, whisk the vinegar, garlic, thyme, salt, and pepper until blended.  While whisking, slowly add the black truffle oil in a slow, steady stream until the dressing is emulsified.

When the potatoes are cooked, drain them and drop them in a medium bowl.  Toss the potatoes with the reserved shallots and pancetta or bacon fat and about ½ of the parsley.  Add the truffle slices and pancetta or bacon.  Drizzle the vinaigrette over the truffle slices, pancetta and potatoes and toss carefully, trying not to break the truffle slices.  Sprinkle remaining chopped parsley on top of the salad and serve.

The most important thing to remember when using black summer truffles in recipes is that these truffles are NOT the same as winter black truffles or winter white truffles.  Summer truffles have a much milder [...]]]>

Summer black truffles are at the height of the season!  This article addresses how to enjoy summer truffles to the fullest.

The most important thing to remember when using black summer truffles in recipes is that these truffles are NOT the same as winter black truffles or winter white truffles.  Summer truffles have a much milder aroma and are more mushroomy in taste than their sought after cousins.  It will rarely work well to substitute summer truffles for winter black truffles, particularly if the preparation requires cooking.

Winter black truffles are best when cooked.  The cooking process releases the wonderfully intense truffle flavor and aroma.  Summer truffles are so delicate in flavor that they will lose much of their taste if cooked; therefore the most important rule with summer truffles is to serve them raw or only slightly warmed.

On the exterior, summer truffles look very similar to winter black truffles as both varieties have a dark, almost black exterior skin.  The inside of summer truffles is beige, where winter truffles are dark charcoal to black inside (when ripe).

Summer Black Truffles

Summer truffles have a delicate nutty flavor and a slightly crisp texture.  Because the flavor of summer truffles is fairly mild, pairing them with other foods is easy.  Summer truffles offer an economical way to boost almost any seasonal menu.

One of the easiest ways to incorporate summer truffles into existing recipes is to simply add them to your favorite salad.  Summer truffles pair well with all summer vegetables: baby greens of any type, asparagus, green beans, fava beans, corn artichoke, fennel, onions, leeks and more. For salad preparations, about one ounce of summer truffle per person is a good rule of thumb.  To intensify the truffle flavor, use a black truffle oil vinaigrette.  If you wish to have a one-dish-meal, top the truffle laced salad with a piece of grilled halibut, sole, salmon, or other fresh fish.

Summer black truffles can be added raw, at the last minute to soups, potato dishes, risotto, eggs, and pasta dishes.  Simply shave a generous portion of summer truffle on top of the dish or incorporate the truffles into the dish just before serving.  Just remember not to expect the same intense flavor as you would enjoy with winter black truffles or white truffles.

In terms of pairing summer truffles with meats and fish, there are endless choices.  Generally lighter meats and almost any fish or shellfish work well with summer truffles.  Choose meats such as veal, pork, or poultry, beef carpaccio, or use cured meats as an accent to a vegetable, potato, or pasta dish.  Recommended seafood selections include scallops, lobster, langoustines, or almost any type of fish such as halibut, cod, sole, snapper, skate wings, monkfish, or even salmon.

Pairing wine with truffles is simply a matter of personal taste.  Certainly any wine originated from a truffle producing area would be a good choice.

Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of summer truffles is the affordable price.  At a fraction of the cost of winter black truffles or white truffles, one can be generous with summer truffles, adding them to a wide variety of seasonal recipes with pleasing results.

Ingredients

• 6 Eggs

• 1 oz Perigord Black Truffle, sliced thin, saving a very small [...]]]>

This recipe is quite simple, allowing the amazing flavor and fragrance of fresh Perigord black truffles to shine through.  Black Truffle Omelette will always be one of my favorite ways to enjoy black truffles.

Ingredients

• 6 Eggs

• 1 oz Perigord Black Truffle, sliced thin, saving a very small piece to grate for the finishing touch 

• 2 1/2 Tablespoons Crème Fraiche

• Salt and Pepper

• 1 oz. Butter

Instructions: Beat the eggs and add the truffle slices. Cover and refrigerate up to 4 hours to allow the truffle flavor to permeate into the eggs. Add two to three tablespoons of crème fraiche to the eggs and truffle slices and stir carefully. Add salt and pepper to taste. In a large hot pan, melt one ounce of butter, add the eggs and truffle. As the eggs cook, push them towards the center of the pan with a wood spatula until they are cooked but still soft. You may serve them as is, or fold the omelette. Sprinkle the graded truffle on top and serve.

Now, we attend the Fancy Food Show with a different agenda. Though I always [...]]]>

I’ve been attending the NASFT Fancy Food Show since I was a child. My great Uncle was in the candy business (we called it the candy show back then) and always got my family in for a day of total indulgence!  

Now, we attend the Fancy Food Show with a different agenda. Though I always enjoy checking out all the new products in every category, my focus is finding new products to offer our clients.

Many of the wonderful products shown at the Fancy Food Show don’t really fit our product line of luxury and French foods; however, there were a few worth considering.  

More Than Gourmet offers high quality stock and demi-glace that assists chefs and home cooks in making delicious sauces. Stocks are available in veal, venison, lamb, chicken, turkey, duck, seafood, vegetable and mushroom. Though I frequently make my own stock (even those that take 48 hours), there are times when it would be so convenient to be able to start my sauce with a high quality, ready-made stock that only needs to be reconstituted. From there, I can add my shallots, garlic, wine, or whatever, to make the final sauce.  We are waiting for samples, to make sure we like the taste and quality of the stocks and demi-glace, but we are hopeful about this product line!

One of the most innovative products we tasted at the show was a line of savory macaroons. The macaroons were in three flavors, goat cheese, black truffle, and porcini mushroom. These scrumpti0us morsels are not yet on the market, and we hope to be the first to carry them.  

Some additional products we might introduce to our line include escargot, marron glace (candied chestnuts), truffle honey, and French chocolate.  We’d love to hear from you if you have other ideas or requests!  

Somewhat surprisingly, there were no producers of top quality caviar at the show.  There were several “affordable” alternatives, but nothing that we thought measured up to the two brands we currently carry, Tsar Nicoulai Caviar and Black River Caviar.

There were more booths than I remember seeing in past years marketing fresh truffle mushrooms and truffle products.  Since white truffles are no longer in season, and black truffles are at the height of their season, there were several companies with a basket full of beautiful, fragrant black truffles from the Perigord in France.  There were also truffle producers from Oregon and other regions (Oregon truffles are not the same species as Perigord truffles).  Though North Carolina has a growing number of farms cultivated the Perigord variety of black truffles, there were no producers at the show from this region.  

There were only three or four producers featuring foie gras or foie gras products, most of which we already carry on our site.  Notably, Hudson Valley Foie Gras was at the show (they don’t usually exhibit at the Fancy Food Show in San Francisco, only in New York), serving up fresh seared foie gras, foie gras torchon, duck proscuitto and magret de canard.  They were clearly there to not only sample their wonderful products, but also to reach out to the food community regarding the pending legislation in California, banning the sale of foie gras in the state, beginning in July 2012.  

One of Hudson Valley Foie Gras’ founders, Izzy, was there collecting signatures from those who wanted to help keep Hudson Valley Foie Gras available in California.  Hudson Valley Foie Gras raises their ducks free range, and hand feeds the ducks when it’s time for gavage. The company believes they should be excluded from the ban, based on the measures they have taken to keep the birds healthy, comfortable and stress free.  

A general observation about the 2010 San Francisco Fancy Food Show was the large number of gluten free foods being offered.  I don’t remember ever seeing so many foods marketed as being gluten free, but this year they were everywhere!  As always, there were a host of olive oils, dressings, salsas, chocolate and candy and of course cheese.  

We thoroughly enjoyed the show as we always do, and hope to soon be featuring some of the newly found French food and luxury products on our website.