Truffles, Olive Oil, and More

Scarf picture has nothing to do with Truffles. You'll have to read on down to find out why it is here.

Do you remember your first Truffle? Not the chocolate kind which are surely mighty fine, but the sublime cousin-of-a-mushroom? Mine was at the Fourways Inn, in Bermuda in late March or early April of 1981.

Spring Break with MA was not the raucous kind. We’d already gone to Ft. Lauderdale as Freshmen and Sophomores so Junior Year was time for Bermuda. (We were out of ideas –or money-- by Senior year…)

Last week Olio2go received a case of Selezione Sliced Black Truffles in olive oil. We’ve priced them low, so it is a spectacular treat for anyone not willing or able spend $999 a pound at the local grocery store. Olio2go now has the jarred truffles, truffle salt, and truffle oil. What more could anyone ask?

Oh, what did we do with them? One of us made risotto and the other made scrambled eggs. Go figure! And, the jar still has enough for 2-4 more recipes!

Truffle butter is something we don’t have so I picked up a small container from Wegman’s gourmet butter case, next to the bread. Merchandise can work so well! The D’Artagnan Truffle Butter has lovely black specks of truffle. It’s an inspiration to make something as simple as toast, just to eat more truffle butter. Price about $7 for the equivalent of 1/2 a stick of butter.

Memories of Ireland abound at this time of year, and I find myself craving Irish Soda Bread. First, what we have here, is often “better” than the bread in Ireland. Perhaps if I’d been brought up on real Irish bread, I’d have a greater appreciation for the bread on Irish soil. That said, I have a recipe that’s pretty good, second only to that found at Kell’s in Seattle or Portland. Whole Foods Irish Soda Bread was pretty dismal. Great Harvest’s was pretty good. I still have a quart of buttermilk in the fridge to make some. What’s a good one? It needs to be firm, slightly sweet with a good balance of raisins and caraway seeds.

I will commend Whole Foods on their gelato offerings—the best we’ve shared since Florence.

Recent Olio2go olive oil tastings included Tenuta di Nozzole from Tuscany. It’s another great Tuscan. We also tasted a yet-unnamed oil from Marche. We’re looking forward to their name and packaging.

I’ve just finished reading Stolen Figs and Other Adventures in Calabria by Mark Rotella. It was a very pleasant travelogue through one of Italy’s less-traveled regions.

I finally finished the Koigu Scarf. The pattern is based on an odd-number of stitches and on every row, simply Knit the first stitch and then continue across with Yarn Over, Knit 2 together until the end. Turn and repeat. Mine is in a colorway I’ll call eggplant or aubergine as that is the dominant color.

Last Saturday, we finally made it to 2Amys for pizza. The four of us went for lunch. It’s so noisy that it’s a bit difficult to carry on a conversation. The pizza was great. I wonder if there’s a time when it is any quieter? While at 2Amys a Bucknell classmate, Jill, stopped by our table on the way out. It was nice to see her and to begin talking about our reunion in June. After leaving the restaurant, we took a stroll to the National Cathedral. It’s an architectural wonder, but it doesn’t quite have the character (and tombs!) of cathedrals in Europe.

Paula and I attended the International Wine & Food Show at the Reagan Building last weekend. The crowd was overwhelming!

After a lovely St. Patrick's Day, Katie and I took one last roll down the ski slopes at Bryce yesterday. Someone remind me to buy gear in the fall! The drive was a little longer than anticipated, but it was a great last day. I love Spring skiing!