When Is a Truffle NOT a Truffle?
Ask a chef at a white tablecloth restaurant to describe a truffle, and he or she will probably wax poetic about the very expensive fungi that grow beneath oak trees. Ask a pastry chef to describe a truffle, and you will hear of a soft-centered confection coated in tempered chocolate.
How did the fungus and the candy end up with the same name? Which came first, the savory truffle or the sweet one?
This post will take a look at truffles. And truffles. A little truffle history, and a recipe or two thrown in for good measure. So, enjoy this exploration of truffles. And truffles.
Truffles From The Ground
What's In A Name
The name “truffle” comes from the Latin for “lump.” Not a very auspicious name for such an expensive ingredient, but it is descriptive.
Truffles belong to a family of fungi that grow underground in a symbiotic relationship with certain trees, most notably oak, but also hazel, beech, and poplar. Since they do grow under the soil, they are difficult to find.
Historically, pigs were used to hunt down truffles. Pigs do not need to be trained to do this; this is an innate ability.
Scientists think that it might have to do with the truffles giving off a pheromone that attracts the pigs. The downside of using pigs to find truffles is that, not only are they genetically predisposed to find truffles, but they are also predisposed to eat them once found.
As you can imagine, this trait is not good for the truffle farmer’s pocketbook. Most farmers now use dogs specially trained to sniff out truffles, much like dogs are trained to sniff out illegal drugs.
Where To Purchase Fresh Truffles Online?
Only Buy From Reputable Purveyors
If you are near a great specialty market or have a supermarket that carries exotic gourmet items, I would start there. You may or may not get lucky.
If not, there are a number of reputable sources online including Amazon.com which includes a number of purveyors who market fresh truffles as well as other truffle products.
What About Truffle Oil?
The next best thing is if you don't have fresh truffles.
Some of you may have heard of or even used truffle oil. Many professional chefs consider truffle oil a reasonable, and more reasonably priced, substitute for truffles. Most commercially produced truffle oils are artificially flavored, however. This is not necessarily a bad thing, know that, if you are purchasing truffle oil, it most likely is not made with truffles, although its flavor might be very pungent and pleasing.
You will find many varieties of truffle-infused oil including Black Truffle Oil, White Truffle Oil, Concentrated Truffle Oil, French, and Italian from various producers. The Italian truffles are the best known, but the French Perigord Truffle also called Winter Black Truffle are exquisite.
Truffle oils are generally not used in cooking, as the heat adulterates their flavors. Instead, they are added after a dish is prepared or used in salads and other cold dishes. You can add small amounts to soups, stews or sautees to add an additional layer of flavor.
Truffle Hunting in Siena
Dogs are not as piggy as the pigs who wolf down the truffles
Cultivating Truffles
It's All About Supply & Demand
Contrary to what many people think, it is possible to cultivate truffles. This was done very successfully and on a large scale back in the late 1800s in France. Farmers would plant acorns dropped by oak trees that had truffles at their bases in other fields, and in a few years: voila-truffle fields.
As the life cycle of the symbiotic relationship between tree and fungus is only about 30 years, these fields are no longer productive. World Wars I and II also greatly interfered with truffle production. Today’s farmers are against mass cultivation, as the relative scarcity of truffles keeps the demand-not to mention the price-high.
Truffles are grown in many parts of Europe but are most notable in France and Italy. China produces a lot of truffles, but they are often considered inferior quality to European truffles. Believe it or not, there is even domestic production of the black truffle. There are truffle-producing groves in the Piedmont areas of North Carolina and Virginia!
The Truffle Shaver
An Inexpensive Gadget For A Very Expensive Ingredient
The truffle shaver was developed to make the most of a costly ingredient. The thinner the slices, the longer the truffle will last. And, since truffles are extremely pungent and flavorful, a little goes a long way. Truffle shavers look very similar to a cheese plane. They differ in that you can control the thickness of each slice by turning a nut on the slicer. Slices can range in thickness from almost paper thin to about ⅛".
At first glance, the truffle shaver might seem like a one-trick pony-that all it is good for is shaving truffles. While this is the reason they were developed, you can also use a truffle shaver to shave hard cheese, such as Parmesan and Romano, for thin-slicing garlic or shallots, and for shaving chocolate.
You can also use a truffle shaver to make thin slices of almost any small, hard vegetable or fruit, such as radishes, mushrooms, new potatoes, strawberries, and kiwi. You can even use it to make thin slices of ginger making kimchi!
Truffled Macaroni and Cheese
I'm not sure the kids will eat this Mac & Cheese but you could try
Truffle macaroni and cheese seems to be all the rage right now, and why not? Almost everyone loves rich and creamy mac and cheese. Add to it the earthy depth that truffles can bring, and you have the perfect upscale side dish for a special meal.
📖 Recipe
Wild Mushroom Macaroni and Three Cheeses with Truffle Oil
Ingredients
- 1 cup crimini mushrooms sliced
- 1 cup shitake muchrooms sliced
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1½ tablespoons dry sherry
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 3 tablespoons flour
- 3 cups whole milk warmed
- 4 ounces herbed goat cheese crumbled
- 4 ounces sharp cheddar shredded
- 3 ounces fontina cheese shredded
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
- 2 tablespoons truffle oil or to taste
- 10 ounces elbow pasta
- salt and fresh cracked pepper to taste
- 2 ounces Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
- ½ cup panko breadcrumbs
Instructions
- Heat a skillet and then add the olive oil.
- Once the oil is hot, add the mushrooms, sherry and salt and pepper to taste and cook over medium-high heat until for about 3-4 minutes, or until the mushrooms have given up all their liquid and the pan is almost dry.
- Stir in the fresh thyme. Set the mushrooms aside.
- In the same pan, heat the butter until bubbly.
- Add the flour and whisk and cook until golden, about 3 minutes.
- Add the 3 cups of milk and stir until boiling and thickened. Season with salt and pepper.
- Off the heat, stir in the goat cheese, cheddar and fontina, a bit at a time. You might need to put the mixture back over low heat, but don’t let it boil.
- Stir in the truffle oil and the reserved mushrooms.
- Cook the pasta according to package directions to al dente, drain well and stir into the cheese-mushroom mixture.
- Taste, and correct seasonings.
- Put the pasta in a baking dish.
- Mix the panko and Parmesan and sprinkle evenly over the top of the casserole.
- Bake the mac and cheese in the upper third of a 400°F oven until the cheese is bubbling and the topping is a deep golden brown.
Let's Not Forget The Famous Truffle Shuffle
From the movie The Goonies
Chocolate Truffles
A Little Truffle History
According to legend, the classic chocolate truffle was invented by accident in the 1920s in France. One of Auguste Escoffier’s apprentices poured boiling hot cream over chopped chocolate instead of tempering it into an egg mixture.
Not wanting to throw out the expensive mistake, they whisked it together and discovered that, when it cooled, it could be rolled into little balls. They then dusted them with cocoa powder.
The resulting lopsided balls looked very much like the fungus of the same name, and the chocolate truffle was born. This is an apocryphal story, but it often makes us feel better to know that our mistakes can turn out to be real gems!
Nowadays in America, “truffle” refers to almost any chocolate candy filled with some cream. Truffles can contain caramel, nuts, chocolate, fruit creams, liqueurs-almost anything goes.
The original, hand-rolled French truffle is always made of a ganache center and rolled in either tempered chocolate, finely chopped nuts or cocoa powder.
At its simplest, the ganache is usually a mixture of 2 parts of excellent quality chocolate to 1 part of heavy cream. The cream is brought to a boil and then poured over the chopped chocolate.
The two ingredients are slowly whisked together to form a deep, dark, glossy emulsion. The ganache is then chilled and scooped and rolled into balls by hand.
While “chocolate truffles” sound very fancy, they are really quite easy to make at home. Make a batch to give away as presents, or as part of a dessert tray. All it takes is a little time, some gloves and a workspace.
Make Your Own Truffles
A simple truffle recipe - makes about 30
This recipe can easily be doubled or even tripled.
📖 Recipe
A Simple Chocolate Truffle Recipe
Ingredients
- 8 ounces semisweet or bittersweet chocolate best quality, cut into small pieces
- ¾ cup heavy whipping cream
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 1 pinch salt
- 2 tablespoons alcohol Cognac, brandy, Grand Marnier, kirsch, rum, bourbon, or Kahlua to name a few (optional)
- Rolling options: sifted powdered sugar, sifted cocoa powder, finely chopped toasted nuts, crushed espresso beans, etc.
Instructions
- Place the chopped chocolate and salt into a metal bowl.
- Bring the cream and butter to a boil, and pour over the chocolate. Whisk until well combined.
- Whisk in the alcohol, if using, or just add a teaspoon or so of vanilla.
- Pour your ganache into a shallow dish, cover, and refrigerate until firm (several hours to overnight).
- When ready to make your truffles, make sure you have a fairly large work space.
- Wearing thin latex gloves will keep your hands clean and keep the ganache from melting too quickly in your hands.
- Have your rolling options in shallow pans-aluminum pie pans work well.
- Using a melon baller or just a spoon, scoop up some ganache and roll it quickly into an irregular ball shape.
- Drop the truffle into one of the pie plates. Once you have rolled ten or so truffles, shake the pie pan(s) to completely coat the ganache.
- Place finished truffles on a plate or in a storage container. It is easiest to have a separate container for each type of truffle you are making.
- Refrigerate the truffles for up to two weeks, or freeze them for up to two months. You can serve them right from the refrigerator, but they are best if you let them sit out for a half hour or so before serving.
Where Does Chocolate Come From?
What makes the chocolate taste so good?
Chocolate is made from cocoa beans, which in turn grow inside pods on the cocoa tree. The first step in making chocolate is to harvest and open the pods, exposing the beans. The beans are allowed to ferment for about a week and then are dried.
At this point, the beans are roasted. Roasting not only brings out their flavor, it also makes the husks easier to remove. After roasting, the beans are cracked into cocoa nibs (pieces generally no larger than ⅛″), and all the husks are separated. The nibs contain 53% cocoa butter and 47% cocoa solids.
The next steps separate the cocoa butter from the solids. First, the nibs are ground until they form a thick paste (cocoa mass or chocolate liquor).
Then, the paste is pressed so all the cocoa butter is “squeezed out.” What is left is 100% pure cocoa solids. When finely ground, the solids are sold as cocoa powder.
To make chocolate for eating and cooking, chocolate manufacturers combine unpressed chocolate liquor, extra cocoa butter, sugar, vanilla, and sometimes milk solids (only in the case of milk chocolate). This mixture is churned together and then refined to break down the different particles and makes is very smooth.
To learn more about the difference between dark and white chocolate and why chocolate taste sweet, you can check out my All About Chocolate article.
Some of My Favorite Ingredients
Adele
Thanks for sharing. I happened to watch a programme on tv which briefly featured a dog hunting for truffles and it was nothing like the truffles I knew.
Granny Apple
This article written by The Reluctant Chef is very informative. Thank you for posting.
After making my own healthful version I wondered who brought the piggy found truffle from the forest floor to the desert table. My own interpretation was either humble country folk , a creative granny or a French chef. L'Esscofier apprentice ,truffle hunters world wide thank you for you wonderful mistake! I imagined the creation to be purposeful to mimic the long sought for forest floor "mushroom" and bring its lumpy form to the desert table as the delicious chocolate creation to the amazement of dinner guests. Yes, I have learned truffles are fungi and the Latin name is less appealing in English.
Are Belgian truffles best? What is your pick? Now I know why there are white and dark chocolate truffles in the chocolate box. Thank you again Monsieur Le Reluctant Chef.
Must check my truffles to see if they are lumpy oh yes,I mean delicious. Prefer Belgian truffles any day!