Cooking with Truffles

truffles

TRUFFLE TREASURE

There is nothing more elegant and impressive than cooking with truffles and inviting friends over to enjoy a truly unique dinner.

White truffles, black truffles, truffle oil, truffle paste or truffle butter. There are a variety of ways to infuse the flavor of truffles in your Italian recipes without spending a lot of money. As I mentioned in the newsletter, recently I made Veal Marengo and finished it with white truffles that I received as a gift. Believe me, if it wasn’t for this gift I would be using truffle oil or paste as a substitute

On occasion a few high end Italian restaurants like Spiaggia in Chicago host elaborate truffle dinners which I still haven’t had the opportunity to attend. So if your cooking at home like me, here are a few recipes for you and your family to enjoy.

Asparagus Salad with Black Truffles

INGREDIENTS

2 pounds of asparagus, trimmed, peeled

1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil

1/4 cup of fresh squeezed lemon juice

2oz of black truffles

4 leaves of romaine lettuce

2 Tbls of white truffle oil

1/2 tsp of salt

1/2 tsp of fresh ground black pepper

PREPARATIONS

Steam the asparagus until tender

Place the asparagus in an ice bath to cool

Cut the asparagus in half inch pieces

In a medium sized bowl toss the asparagus with the olive oil and lemon juice

Season with salt and pepper

Separate the asparagus evenly on the pieces of lettuce

Shave the black truffles all over the top

Drizzle with white truffle oil

Serves 4 people

Chicken Risotto with Truffle Oil

INGREDIENTS

1 pound of boneless chicken breasts

1 bunch of long green onions, chopped

3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

4 Tbls of butter

3 Tbls of white truffle oil

1 and 1/2 cups of Arborio rice

4 to 6 cups of chicken broth

1 cup of parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp of salt

1 tsp of fresh ground black pepper

1/4 cup of flat leaf parsley. Chopped

PREPARATIONS

Put chicken broth in a sauce pan and bring to a boil then set aside.

Sweat the onions and garlic in truffle oil and 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat until they start to soften, do not brown.

Add the chicken and cook for about 5 minutes.

Add the rice

Stir the rice, chicken, onions and garlic together for a couple of minutes to toast the rice a little bit to add a nutty flavor to the dish. Do not add any liquid to the rice yet.

When the rice starts to smell nutty or sticks to the pan, it is now time to add the broth, start by adding 2 cups and make sure you stir well to free any rice kernels that may have stuck to the bottom of the pan. You do not want to let anything burn because that flavor will impart into the rice.

Bring the liquid to a boil then reduce the liquid to a simmer over low heat. You will need to stir the rice constantly to prevent any burning on the bottom and to develop the starch, or texture of the dish.

Add more broth one cup at a time until the rice is cooked to your desired doneness and all the broth is absorbed.

Remove the risotto from the heat and stir in the parmesan cheese and the remaining butter.

Plate and finish with the chopped parsley.

Serves 6 people.

Fettuccine with Mushrooms and White Truffles

INGREDIENTS

1 pound of fettuccine

2 bunches of long green onions, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

8 baby Portobello mushrooms, sliced

1 cup of dried porcini mushrooms, dehydrated

10 white button mushrooms, sliced

1/4 cup of extra-virgin olive oil

3 Tbls of butter

1/2 cup of Marsala wine

1 cup of chicken broth

1/2 tsp of fresh ground black pepper

1 white truffle

1 Tbls of white truffle oil

1/4 cup of parmesan cheese

PREPARATIONS

In a large saucepan sauté the onions and garlic in the olive oil and butter until tender, about 2 minutes.

Add the mushrooms and sauté another 5 minutes.

Deglaze the pan with the wine and broth.

Simmer until slightly reduced.

Season with pepper.

In 6 quarts of boiling salted water cook the fettuccine until al dente.

Drain the pasta and toss in the mushroom sauce.

Plate and shave the white truffles on top.

Drizzle with truffle oil and serve with the Parmesan cheese.

Serves 6 people

Filet Mignon with Truffle Sauce

INGREDIENTS

6 beef filets 2 inches thick

1/2 tsp of salt

1 tsp of fresh grated black pepper

2 shallots, sliced

1 clove of garlic, crushed

2 Tbls of extra virgin olive oil

1 Tbls of butter

1/2 cup of dry white wine

1 cup of beef broth

1 medium size black truffle, grated

1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream

PREPARATIONS

Season both sides of the filets with the salt and pepper

In a large skillet cook the filets in the butter and oil for 3 minutes on each side.

Remove from pan and keep warm.

Saute the shallots and garlic in the same pan until tender for 2 minutes

Deglaze the pan with the wine and beef broth scraping the brown bits off the bottom.

Bring to a boil and then a simmer and reduce the mixture two about two-thirds

Add the cream for 2 more minutes and spoon over the steaks.

Top with grated truffles

Serves 6 people

Truffle Mashed Potatoes

INGREDIENTS

1 pound of russet potatoes, peeled, diced and cooked.

4 Tbls of truffle butter

1/2 cup of heavy whipping cream

1/2 tsp of salt

1/2 tsp of freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup of truffle oil

PREPARATIONS

Mash together the potatoes, butter, cream, salt and pepper.

Drizzle the top with the truffle oil before serving

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