Truffles Galore!  

The Magic of Fresh Truffles

Burgundy black truffle

The scent of a fresh truffle is indescribable. It fills the room almost instantly when fresh, and the flavor is heady, sweetly earthy and luxurious. Regarded as the “diamond of the kitchen” by 18th-century French gastronome Brillat-Savarin, the truffle is internationally known for its prized and unmistakable flavor.
Symbiotic in nature, fresh truffles are found in the soil beneath oak, and sometimes beech and hazel trees. By drawing carbohydrates from the tree and converting the energy to construct filaments, the spores of truffles produce an expanding web of fungus beneath the soil. In return, these filaments on the root tip collect an abundance of nutrients for the tree. It is due to this essential relationship that the truffle is unable to be cultivated.
Once the fruit emerges from the filament, young truffles rapidly increase in size and weight during the heat of August and September months. Eventually the growth slows and the fruit begins to ripen, breathing an incredible perfume through the earth. As the autumn harvest reaches its peak, this gastronomic delicacy begins to emerge in the bustling outdoor markets across Italy and France.

White “Alba” truffle

The Italian white truffle (Tuber Magnatum) is most famously associated with the Piemonte town of Alba, in the province of Cuneo, Italy. While Alba was once the center of the Italian truffle harvest, due to over-harvesting, it is now quite rare to find a true “Alba” truffle. Today, Tuber Magnatum truffles of excellent quality are harvested in various parts of Italy including Umbria, Abruzzo and Le Marche. In the world of truffles, the whites are the finest and most highly regarded of all truffles. Their season runs from late October to late December, but they are usually depleted by January.
The Burgundy truffle (Tuber Uncinatum and also Tuber Aestivum), also known as the summer truffle, is grown throughout Europe including central-eastern France, northern Italy and eastern Spain. These truffles are readily available from September through November.

Sliced Burgundy Truffle

The winter black truffle (Tuber melanosporum) is typically sourced from the Périgord region of France. It is during the month of January when black truffles are at their peak, though available as early as December until late March.
Formaggio Kitchen is proud to offer these elusive, highly esteemed delicacies on a seasonal basis. To guarantee freshness and quality, all truffles are available by special order. Please feel free to approach a member of our produce team with any questions you may have or to place an order. We are also happy to take orders or answer questions via phone at: 617-354-4750.

Zuppa di Porri - Authentic (guaranteed) Tuscan Leek Soup

This is the simplest most divine soup on the planet and will impress your guests beyond all limits.

This should take about an hour to prepare. Recommendations: use the best chicken broth available, bone broth (now available in tetrapak) is tops.  Use ONLY the white portion of the leeks. You may cut up to where it is yellow at the core but once it becomes more than halfway from the core out, yellow?  Stop. Save the rest for a broth or a stew or a roast. Obviously you will cut the dark green leafy portion off and toss.

Ingredients:
6 medium leeks with more than 2 inches of white at the base. If the leeks are smaller and have very little white at the base, use 12.
Parmigiano Reggiano or real Gruyere
50 gm butter
2 generous soup spoons of flour
1.5 liter broth
black pepper
Olive Oil EV First Cold Pressed

Since we do not have Tuscan bread here in the states, use the best French baguette you can find to make the cheese toasts. You may also make bread cubes toasted with olive oil and when hot from the oven, toss with parmigiano reggiano cheese to coat and place back into oven for a brief time to melt the cheese to the bread, set aside.  If you do choose to make croutons, use a good country loaf.

If using the French Baguette, slice thin, roast both sides in the oven, either broil or hot, hot oven. Once the second side is toasted, take out and place slices of real Gruyere cheese, place back in oven to melt.  When done, remove, cool and set aside. 

Method:
Thinly slice the leeks.
Melt butter in 2qt pot. When bubbly, add the leeks.

Saute on medium for 2 min. Add the flour using a sifter or strainer or just rain it in to the mix. You will be making a type of roux but with flour coated leeks. If you think you need a bit more flour, add it without worry. Turn up the heat a bit so you can try to get a toasted roux mix, stirring constantly. When it has a little toasted color, add all your broth at once. Bring to boil, then drop the temp to low. Cover and cook for 25 min. Uncover for the last 5 minutes. If it seems to runny, cook another 5 min or so to evaporate and if it turned out real thin, take some of the broth out in a small bowl, add flour by the teaspoon, stirring so you can add that to the pot without it clumping.  Add black pepper and stir. Taste to correct salt if necessary.  The leeks should be cooked so well they almost disintegrate making a nice thick but still fluid soup.

Serve in French onion type bowls or nice rustic Tuscan terracotta bowls. Garnish with a drizzle of olive oil, a little parmigiano and the toasts or croutons and any extra pieces of bread, place on the table to add while eating.