eG Foodblog: hathor - Carpe Diem

[edsel]

There are stuffed cinghiale all over the streets, its a hoot. And when you look down the block...the mountains are right there, its wonderful. 

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Are the cinghiale stuffed in the culinary sense? (Somehow I'm thinking more like taxidermy). Is there a particular season when the boar are hunted?

Loving your blog, Judith. Your photos are beautiful.

[hathor]

Its been raining off and on all day, but that didn't stop us from driving through the Carpini Valley to Pietralunga's truffle and potato festival! I didn't make up that combination, apparently the Pietralungians are very proud of their white potatoes.

Right at the entrance is the "Candy Man", guaranteed to catch every child's eye.

This is the "Sausage Man from Spoleto". We bought some cinghiale sausage from him, with and without chili peppers. mmmm...

The rest of this piggy has gone to porchetta heaven. May he rest in peace.

Here is the nice potato lady, who also sells local honey. Another odd combination, if you ask me.

When the rains came in earnest, these boys volunteered to run bags of potatos to the church. It was pretty funny looking....hmmm, maybe you had to be there...

Here is Francesco Monni, my ricotta supplier, along with his daughter. Its a long story, but he calls Jeff, "Jeff American Express", and as we are walking in to the festa, we hear, "Hallloooo American Express!!"

Oh yes. I'm holding out on the truffle photos! Would you be anxiously waiting for pictures of potatoes?? I think not!

Here is a sign that just struck me funny. I don't think roll and wine should be in the same sentence.

OK. OK. I give in. White truffles, in all their glory!

This is NOT the Alba truffle fair, this is the little bitty town of Pietralunga, but these are local truffles and they smell and taste wonderful. The non-negotiated price for the big guys is about 250 euros a kilo.

Here are the offerings at another booth.

Later on I'll show you the ones that went home with us.

And one last image from the Pietralunga festa, I took the picture because, well because, she cracked me up walking around with a napkin on her head. But aside from that, this woman's face is very representative of what the old timers look like. The kids look like this too, but they are more 'modern', so its disguised behind tweezed eyebrows (the men) and dyed hair (both sexes). These "umbrians' have lived here for a very, very long time, so it wouldn't surprise me if this was the face of an Etruscan or the original Umbrian tribes.

[hathor]

There are stuffed cinghiale all over the streets, its a hoot. And when you look down the block...the mountains are right there, its wonderful. 

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Are the cinghiale stuffed in the culinary sense? (Somehow I'm thinking more like taxidermy). Is there a particular season when the boar are hunted?

Loving your blog, Judith. Your photos are beautiful.

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Edsel, yes! In the taxidermy sense! Cinghiale season is right now, I just heard some guns going off a few minutes ago. It starts on Sept.1 and I'm not sure when it finishes, I think at the end of November. Its sort of un-nerving hearing the guns, and knowing people are out there mushroom hunting.

And here is the observation of the day: The hunters wear head to toe camouflage..makes them hard to see in the woods, so to make themselves more visible, they wear bright orange vests. What is up with that logic???

[hathor]

OH! I forgot a picture! Swisskaese...this one is for you! The first roast chestnuts of the season. And I'm happy to report, they were soft, sweet and delicious!

Edited October 7, 2006 by hathor (log)

[hathor]

There was some big doings in the piazza when we got back. The other bar in town, the Aries, has been closed all week, it's changed hands, and tonight was the grand re-opening. Free food and drinks for everyone!

The entire town was there, including our mayor. I had to squeeze myself into the corner to try and get this picture.

This is part of the over flow from the bar. Well, maybe. Actually these guys are pretty much there all the time. You know what a minion is? In order to hold a Jewish service there has to be a certain number of men present. In Montone, we have a similar tradition, any work or unusual occurence must be over seen a group of men, and here we call them the 'menion". On our block, we also have the women who sit on the church steps, they perform a similar function and are called the 'feminion'. The feminion reserves the right to comment on all comings, goings, pairings and flower pot arrangements.

[hathor]

Now, I'm going to go make some dinner....oh, I think we are going to have some TRUFFLES for dinner!!

Yeah, well, it seemed like a good idea to rub it in just a little....!!

Edited October 7, 2006 by hathor (log)

[legourmet]

OK. OK. I give in. White truffles, in all their glory!

This is NOT the Alba truffle fair, this is the little bitty town of Pietralunga, but these are local truffles and they smell and taste wonderful.  The non-negotiated price for the big guys is about 250 euros a kilo.

Great blog and impressive pictures.

250 Euros for 1 kilo truffles. Incredible! I think you've missed a "0" . Normally the prize for white truffles is about 2500 Euros. Here in Munich you have to pay 6800 EUROs which is about 8800$. If that mentioned prize is the real one I've to head immediately into my car and will buy the whole harvest and make a lot of money.

[edsel]

This is NOT the Alba truffle fair, this is the little bitty town of Pietralunga, but these are local truffles and they smell and taste wonderful.  The non-negotiated price for the big guys is about 250 euros a kilo.

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Do you know if these are the same type of truffles as the ones from Alba? They certainly look similar, but I wonder why they're so much cheaper.

Can't wait to see what you do with them for dinner! Are the truffles allowed to touch any of the other food?

[Dominic]

hathor,

I am totally taken by your blog! Thank you Edsel for directing me to it. hathor, I will be driving to Umbria from Turin on the 30th or 31st. I have about 4 days to discover the region of my grandparents. No, there has not been one family member that has returned to her region or home in Norcia since 1916. Her name was Carrie but as a young girl in Italy it was Scholastica.

Our family owns and operates a restaurant in North East Ohio by her name, Carrie Cerino's, www.carriecerinos.com, and we feature the food of her family from Umbria. I am all ears and willing to go anywhere to cram as much info as possible from that region. I will be starting at her home base in Norcia. Please advise as to salumi makers, butchers, pasta makers etc that you would recommend a chef should visit.

After reading your blog I am really getting excited about Terra Madre and this trip. I do not speak Italian, except of course for the curse words that my grandmother had taught me. So, I can't use those, is there a good % of people that speak English there?

Thanks

[racheld]

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I've been known to do this very thing with a BIG dinner napkin when Chris and the kids start joking at the table in a restaurant. I can't run, but I CAN hide.

These pictures are priceless. And what was the difference in the three sets of truffles on the table---the prices varied quite a bit, with no discernible variation in shape, size or color. I've never tasted a truffle, either, come to think of it.

[Swisskaese]

Thanks for the photo. I can taste and smell them already.

[hathor]

Buon'domenica! Sorry to be so late in the day...but its been a gorgeous day and I couldn't force myself to come inside.

Dominic: brush up on your Italian... some people speak English, but not that many. I'll try and come up with some resources for you.

It really is 250 euros/kilo. Size and the 'intact-ness' determine much of the price. This is a very small region, with low quantity, in comparison to other regions in Italy or France. There have been conferences held on how to 'develop' the business: i.e. charge more money. This is not a tourist area, so its locals who are buying. And many of the locals pride themselves on finding their own truffles.

What does a truffle taste like? Its more about smell, or aroma,than a taste on the tongue. It's an earthy, pervasive, quasi-aphrodiasic smell. Can an aphrodisiac be smell only? To me, it smells like fall, fires, home, hearth, warmth, decay, sensousness. The first time my niece smelled a truffle, her exact words, "Its smells like ass." The truffle imparts its fragrance to everything it touches. salt, pasta, potatoes, eggs.

One New Year's Eve dinner, we were served steamed lobsters with white truffle. Hmmm....I thought this was pretensious, or too precious, they were trying too hard. It turned out to be the most incredible marriage of flavors. I'm blessed with the ability to recall smells and flavors, and this is one I can summon at will.

Truffle scent is very fragile, they should be eaten quickly as they degrade rapidly. Everyone has a theory on conserving them, but the best method is to eat them asap.

'Tartufatti" sauce is usually a mix of olives, oil and precious little actual truffle. There is nothing wrong with tartufatti, its just a blend that sort of spreads around the flavor.

Truffled grappa is an abomination! And I will argue to the death on that one!

[hathor]

These are the white truffles that we brought home with us. This is about 40 euros worth of truffles.

But, its not about the money, its about the smell, sort of like wonton sex and barking at the moon. And really, can you put a price on that??

Here is all the goodies that we bought at the festa.

Plan A was to make some pasta for the truffles, but we decided that we would rather have some roasted potatoes with shaved truffles.

First course was the lentil soup, or lentil stew, with fresh porcini. The porcini were thinly sliced and added at the last minute.

I was trying to get the photo, but Jeff couldn't wait to break off a piece of the crispy edge. Good thing I didn't have a knife handy!!

Truffles are brushed clean and then shaved over the dish. It''s a finishing note, not something to be cooked within the dish. Usually. I'm sure there are exceptions!

And the finished dish...well, it was very, very finished when we got through with it.

We had some more of those purple artichokes and the "holy tomatoes". As far as the tomatoes go, bleh, I've had better. Then again, it is early October.

We drank a nice, hearty, Umbrian red and watched the Thin Man on TV. I love the Thin Man series, one day, I want to grow up to be Myrna Loy. My luck, I'll come back as Asta!

[hathor]

This morning, we got up, determined to find porcini. Please remember, I've lived most of my life in New York City, my idea of porcini hunting was to go to Gourmet Garage.

What we lacked in experience, we made up in enthusiasm.

Our first stop was by the 'diga' or dam. It was a strange place, all the water had been let out of the dam, leaving this cracked moon scape. The footprints on the left hand side are cinghiale prints.

We set off into the woods, and there were mushrooms of every size, shape and color.

That pod looking mushroom belongs in a Dr. Seuss book.

The whole time we are digging around, Jeff keeps asking me, "Is this a porcini? Is this a porcini? Do you mean to tell me I can't eat any of these gorgeous mushrooms??" It was too much for him to handle, all these fantastic mushrooms and not a porcini in sight.

We did run across some hunters, and they told us to throw away everything we had in our basket. It was on of those, "told you so" moments...but! I held my tongue.

At one point, we were deep in the woods, when we could hear the hunting dogs heading our way, then the hunters start yelling to flush the cinghiale, then the gun shots, it put me on edge to hear all the yelling and barking.

Neither one of us was wearing a watch, but we knew it was lunch time when all the hunters started packing up and heading home. No hunter would miss lunch, or risk the wrath of the wife.

We had two mushrooms that could possibly be porcini, a bunch of those yellow brain like mushrooms and some weird berries. Jeff stomach was growling louder than the barking dogs, so lunch seemed like a good idea.

[hathor]

Yesterday I had looked over the menu at one of Pietralunga's tavernas, and it seemed like a good idea for lunch.

There was indoor and outdoor seating, and it didn't matter where you were, the whole placed smelled like truffles.

First course: gnocchi with truffles.

Secondi: bistecca

Dolce: biscotti dipped in vin santo (Toscana style vin santo, the 'real' local stuffed is stored in the chimney to age, and tastes like smoke. GAK!)

The chestnut guys were having a much easier time of it this afternoon.

Here are some of the chocolates from the chocolate booth. I feel bad....no deserts in this blog, except for half eaten biscotti. sorry!!

As we were leaving, the band from Umbertide was unloading. I've seen the band from Umbertide before, they're very good...but I've never seen these costumes before!

These arches are in the main piazza in Pietralunga, it must only be habit that is holding them up.

And on the way home, the baby lambs decided to not be so shy.

Now, I think I'd better go wash some of the mud off myself. You know what's cool about playing in the woods here... no lyme disease!!

[mizducky]

Yikes! Do be careful with the shrooms of uncertain identity, okay? As the old saying goes: "there are old mushroom hunters, and bold mushroom hunters, but no old bold mushroom hunters."

/signed, a child of suburbia who stuck to picking wild raspberries

[Chufi]

hathor, this is such a great blog, as far as I'm concerned, one of the very best ever... your pictures are gorgeous but the best part for me is your writing.. so evocative and you really know how to capture your audience! I am completely hooked! Every post is a story. Beautiful.

[hathor]

Yikes! Do be careful with the shrooms of uncertain identity, okay? As the old saying goes: "there are old mushroom hunters, and bold mushroom hunters, but no old bold mushroom hunters."

/signed, a child of suburbia who stuck to picking wild raspberries

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No worries! We are taking our basket to "Those Who Know Better". I'm not taking any chances on these mushrooms! There are many other things I'll be old and bold about...but not mushrooms. (psst...wanna come skiing with me?? )

[hathor]

hathor, this is such a great blog, as far as I'm concerned, one of the very best ever... your pictures are gorgeous but the best part for me is your writing.. so evocative and you really know how to capture your audience! I am completely hooked! Every post is a story. Beautiful.

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/quote]

Thanks Klary...those are kind words. I'm dying to read about your vacation...its killing me that I haven't had time to see what you were up to!

Edited October 8, 2006 by hathor (log)

[legourmet]

These are the white truffles that we brought home with us.  This is about 40 euros worth of truffles.

But, its not about the money, its about the smell,  sort of like wonton sex and barking at the moon. And really, can you put a price on that??

No. Because it's not the same like Alba truffles. This one is similar to the Choiromyces meandriformis which will be found in Germany too. Still a good one and also very tasty.

That pod looking mushroom belongs in a Dr. Seuss book.

Coprinus Comatus ( in German "Schopftintling") eatable in the shown stage. Very good with scrambled eggs.

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Looks like Ramaria Flava (in German "Schwefelgelbe Koralle") eatable when young. But who really knows when this mushroom is in a young stage. To be thrown away.

The mushroom in your first picture I've never seen before. Looks like a berry is fallen onto a white mushroom and sticked to the middle.

[Eden]

Fabulous pictures of all the scary mushrooms (not to mention the tasty ones.) One of my favorite memories from a previous italy trip is this two foot tall scary black mushroom just dripping with ooze - it looked like something out of a dark fairy tale...

I am reveling in your pictures of Italy in the Fall, that's my favorite time of year over there, between the beautiful weather & the abundance of the harvest. There's a wonderful treat they make in Chianti during the Vendemmia called schiacciata all'uva, it's a short dense cake with fennel seeds and grapes (with the pips still in), do they do anything similar in umbria? Or any other special dishes using grapes from the harvest?

Oh and I want to be Myrna Loy when I grow up too, but don't be dissin' Asta

edited for egregious typo

Edited October 9, 2006 by Eden (log)

[Abra]

Such beautiful photos! But they can't match my enjoyment of your spelling of "wonton sex." There are so many places I could go with thawt, but I don't want to distract from the beauty of Umbria.

[bavila]

Am I reading this correctly? Was that steak really just 2.5 euros?

[Pontormo]

Last night I got back from errands around the same time that "Weekend Edition" was drawing to a close and the music being promoted was that of the Sicilian artist, Carmen Consoli.

At one point, I jumped. "Bramo," she sang.

"Bramo" is my favorite word in Italian. It means "I yearn," and is customarily uttered by late medieval saints in early printed books.

Judith, bramo!

Edited October 8, 2006 by Pontormo (log)

[Peter H]

Am I reading this correctly?  Was that steak really just 2.5 euros?

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Could it be priced by weight? Looks like some text has been cropped off after the price. It looks delicious!