Truffles? Yes please!

Now this is where a wise person might say, "hmmm....is she referring to the chocolate variety or the fungus variety?" About 5 years ago, I didn't even know there were such things called truffles (were on the fungus type right now, otherwise I would have been a very very sheltered child). Never would I have thought that these earthy, stinky, nasty looking black and white pitted balls are edible, much less considered a delicacy. Low and behold they are, and as you might have guessed by my description, I'm not their number one fan. I think they get over used on crappy food to try and give it some dazzle, when you just end up with something tasting like you took a huge bite of earthy funkiness.

There is a time and place, though. Like just a few drops over sauteed asparagus with a poached egg on top (personal favorite), or just enough mixed into potatoes to give them depth but not dominate. A restaurant I worked at would drizzle a tiny amount over hot flatbreads from the oven, which would make the whole area stink of truffle oil, but as a customer it was a great compliment to the pizza. This being the giving season, you may want to try giving someone a small bottle of truffle oil for Christmas or just because. It may sit on the shelf for months, but when it does get used (in small doses of course) it will transform a depth-less food into something with character worth talking about.

Honestly, fungal truffles wasn't really what I wanted to write about. And it doesn't even sound pleasant so let's switch gears to Chocolate truffles!

Ahh the power of chocolate! Although it has been disproved to be a powerful aphrodisiac, only containing tiny amounts of tryptophan and phenylethylamine which create serotonin and amphetamines respectively, in the body. There is a still a benefit to consuming chocolate aside from the pure joy you get when a piece just happens to finds its way into your mouth. Chocolate is packed full of flavanoids (antioxidants) that help fight the bad cholesterol "LDL" in the body. Call me crazy, but having listened to the "Good vs Bad" related to health for so many years, I have a permanent image of little rounds blobs with wild faces flying towards each other to battle. Swords drawn, battle cries, who will win?! I'm sure its much more glorious in my mind than in actuality. The point is, don't completely discredit your chocolate, especially the darkest of the dark. This is where you will get the most "bang for your buck" - a term I don't like, but somehow find myself using constantly.

So what's in a truffle?

This is were the magic happens. Truffles are super easy to make and can be filled with a huge variety of flavor combinations. The limiting factor is really what you feel comfortable doing. I'm sure many of you have seen the surge in "Aztec" style chocolate over the past few years, where you add a little cayenne pepper to give it a deeper, spicier flavor. Well what about tea infused chocolate? Earl grey tea complements chocolate hugely, along with honey, lemon, and well pretty much any fruit. The trick is how your going to get the flavors you want into the chocolate, namely the ganache. Ganache is a combination of cream and chocolate that can be used in many different desserts. Anything that has that ultra smooth chocolate surface on it most likely has had ganache poured over it. Ganache is commonly the filling for truffles with that creamy softish chocolaty center. In order to make this, your going to need to heat some cream (or milk but I like cream, might as well go all the way right?). This is your opportunity for infusing the flavors you desire. I personally like to infuse coffee beans into my cream, scrapped vanilla beans + the pod, spices, maybe some orange rind. I'm a huge fan of citrus and find that the acids in citrus help develop the flavor to be more complex. The only thing you need to keep in mind are your ratios of cream to chocolate. I like the 2:1 chocolate to cream, although this does make for a soft ganache to work with. You also want to bear in mind the type of chocolate you are using and experiment with different amounts of dark chocolate (60 + % cocoa solids) milk chocolate, semi-sweet and so forth.

Okay, enough said. What to do?

Combine your "infusion flavors" with your cream and bring to a gentle scald. Turn off the heat and allow to steep. This is only going to intensify the flavor. While the cream is still hot, pour it through a strainer (unless old vanilla pods, spices, and rind is really something you like chewing on) right into the chocolate. Cover with plastic wrap, allow to sit 5-10 minutes. This is a good chance to get out a shallow pot and bowl that fits in the top of the pot, you are basically making a double boiler to melt the chocolate you will use to coat the truffles. Place some water in the pot and snugly fit the bowl over the top. NOTE* the water should not touch the bottom of the bowl, check the bottom of your bowl to see if it is wet as a quick check.* Now that at least a few minutes have pasted, try stirring your ganache mixture with a spoon. If all the chocolate is melted it should come together into a slightly thick, shiny mixture. Place this in the refrigerator until it is set. Prep a baking sheet (aka cookie sheet, sheet pan...yada yada) with parchment paper and grab a small ice cream scoop to make "bite size" truffles. I'm a huge fan of using ice cream scoops for portioning things out, as opposed to the old fashion not so perfect two spoon method. You should also make sure that you have room to fit the cookie sheet into the refrigerator with it lying flat. Okay, lets PORTION! Grab out the ganache mixture and portion it out using the scoop. Once the bowl is finished just place the sheet pan into the refrigerator and allow the ganache balls to set up for a minute or two. Meanwhile, melt some chocolate in the double boiler over medium-high heat. I like to use dark chocolate for coating, but once again always feel free to play. You only need the chocolate to be melted, if you over heat the chocolate it will turn funny colors when it cools. This is known as blooming, and although it has no affect on flavor, it makes for a not so appealing truffle. Now it is time to get messy. Start by washing your hands very well with luke warm to cold water. Dry off your hands and pull out the ganache balls. Working quickly, scoop up some of the melted chocolate and coat the inside of your hands with the chocolate. Pick up a ganache ball and roll it around in your hands until it is barely coated. You are going to do this with all the truffles, coating your hands with more melted chocolate as needed. As carefully as you can get the truffles back into the refrigerator to set. This will only take a minute or two. Repeat this chocolate coating process one to two more times. For the final coating, roll the truffle in your hands, coating in chocolate again, but instead of placing it back on the sheet pan, immediately place it into whatever you wish your added element to be. This can be cocoa powder, powdered sugar, chopped nuts and so forth. Once again, have fun and think creatively. Roll it around so that it is completely coated. To finish the truffles....and you thought it was over...try to brush off the excess powder. Using a gentle paint brush for this works great, and gives you the look of a perfectionist at work. Now you can enjoy your creation! This all seems like a lot, but not only do these truffles look great and handmade (in a classy way), they are your creative works. Giving these out at the holidays is a great gift and always impresses.

cel-e-brate good times come on!

'tis the season for a birthday! Which means its appetizer night....again. And, despite what you might think, this is awesome! This has been the ritual for my older sister for the past 8 years.....a smorgasbord of appetizers to have as dinner, this of course is accompanied with a barrage of wine, spirits and beer. My family has a tradition of celebrating each persons birthday at my parents house, which involves careful planning of the birthdayer's favorite meal or in many cases, craving of the week ranging from "make your own pizza's" to crab Louie salad (a personal favorite).

My sister has been know for fully expressing the indecisive gene that runs in our family, and simply wants a little of EVERYTHING! I completely agree and am always pleasantly relieved to nibble on a little of this and a little of that. My favorite moment is when I look at something that is particularly delectable and think to myself "Oh baby, YESSSSS!" Sadly, I can tune out the entire world around me for just that one second and savor all the wild flavors.

*NOTE* For anyone reading this right now and thinking that I'm completely out of my gourd, you need to go rent PIXAR's Ratatouille and watch the scene where Remy describes the flavor sensations to his brother Emile. Then you might appreciate this. Plus, how can you not like a skinny kid named Linguini. Here's a trailer to peak your interest.... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c3sBBRxDAqk

The above was written in the planning phase of her birthday and the appetizer throw-down was changed to the homely choice of chili, cornbread and beer. As much as I love chili and southern style cornbread, which is slightly sweetened and served with a generous pat of butter and honey, there was something lost in the ritualistic waves of food constantly streaming from the oven and my mom smiling as she sets another carefully planned item down on the counter for eagerly awaiting mouths. But all was not lost, the chili was more than I could have asked for. Loaded with green and red peppers, onions, various beans, local Shelburne Farms beef, and enough spices to last most people a year. It was food to feed the soul. The cornbread was its usual greatness, slightly sweet, crumbly and moist. Yes MOIST! I have come to find that a large number of people hate that word with a passion, but I'm going to use it so be warned. Finally the beer was great, all Dogfish Head, which if you haven't ever tried you are seriously missing out. However, it does pack a punch and each brew could be deemed a meal on its own.

Now we arrive at dessert. This is something that I have been told I can be overly critical about, but being a foodie I think that comes with the territory. In my opinion, dessert is one of the most important bites of the meal. This is your last attempt (as a host or cook) at trying to seal the deal with the diner. No matter how horrible the meal was, you still have the power to leave that person with a positive lasting impression. And if the meal was epic than all you have done is further ingrained your awesomeness. The best approach is to keep it simple! Use flavors and textures that people are familiar with and just do it right. Aside from the indecisive gene, I have the over the top extravaganza gene as well. Thanks mom and dad - you are both to blame for that one :) This has caused more stress in my life than anything else, and I'm the only one to fault for that.

For this meal, my sister did stay with the tradition of MUD PIE, and not the kind your kids make, but good 'ol chocolate crumb crust, B&J's ice cream and fudge. It sounds super simple, and it is. Ice cream is a staple in most peoples freezer, and who doesn't like a crumbly chocolate crust and to top it all off, a nice layer of fudge over the top. If you feel that this is beneath you, then by all means jazz it up. Maybe make a chocolate lace tuile cup, make your own premium ice cream and Kahlua-fudge sauce. But in the end this is just as good and takes a total of 15 minutes (minus freezing time) to create. This is a first for me, usually I never go by the amount of time something takes, I'm the one that wants to create each component and slave over the oven all day long for one menu item. However, now that I have somehow managed to sign myself up for multiple jobs, volunteering opportunities etc, I seriously am beginning to appreciate time saving techniques and recipes that are just down-right good and quick. So see for yourself and I'm sure you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Unclassy Mud Pie

1 Oreo chocolate pie crust
2 pints Ben & Jerry's Ice cream (personal favorites are coffee health bar crunch and New York Super Fudge chunk)
Your favorite fudge sauce

1. Soften one ice cream and spread evenly in pie crust.
2. Freeze until hard.
3. Soften second ice cream and spread evenly in pie crust over first ice cream.
4. Freeze until hard.
5. Warm fudge until liquidy but not overly hot.
6. Pour over ice cream in an even pool.
7. Freeze until ready to eat. Some people like whipped cream with this, but honestly I feel that putting cream on top of cream just begins to be too much. But every party has a pooper so don't let me influence you.

Visions of pot pie....

Vegetables are a must on a diet. I suggest carrot cake, zucchini bread, and pumpkin pie. ~Jim Davis

Trying to learn to balance a passion for good food and health can sometimes be a little tricky. I try and approach everything with an "as close to the earth" approach. By eating food in its most basic, whole form you only reap the benefits of all the naturally occurring nutrients.

Tis the season for ROOTS! This is one of the first things that I look forward to every fall, a big pile of sweet carrots, parsnips, little baby potatoes and whatever else I can find at the market that's different and fun. There really is no wrong way you can prepare roasted roots. There are only three essentials: your favorite veggie (I'm a huge fan of roasting brussel sprouts), a little oil and salt. After few minutes in the oven and ta da ! Recently, I have begun whisking up a vegetable marinade consisting of good quality extra virgin olive oil, maldon sea salt, fresh black pepper, garlic (try using your zester, its incredibly fast), and a touch of local honey. This marinade is extremely versatile and is delicious on all different vegetables.

A Friday night...

Miniature baby red carrots, new purple potatoes, local brussel sprouts, sweet parsnips, fragrant celery root, fresh baby red onions, and wonderfully full flavored cremini mushrooms all marinaded and roasted until just barely tender. Having gone a little overboard in the preparation of this, we had nearly enough to feed 5 people. This was served along with an incredible chicken pot pie, something I never thought I would be excited about eating. It was filled with local organic chicken, and packed with sauteed vegetables. All of this was placed into a oven proof skillet. A brown rue was used to help thicken the cooking liquid, and savory pie crust was placed on top. The hardest part of this entire process was waiting....and waiting....and waiting. The only cure I can find for this is to sit back and sip some really good wine, and maybe play a game of scattegories one of my all time favorite games. Once the smells began to flow out of the kitchen and the pie was golden brown and bubbling, it was time. I think the first slice you make in anything you have created that has that golden beautiful crust is always a time for pause. Its one of those times that you get to savor, the sound of the flaky crust breaking apart, the smells that erupt and the wonderful image of all the vegetables and chicken packed in and just holding together enough to form a nice fat piece of pie. This is also one of those times that I don't feel guilty about eating a huge piece, or going back for seconds. Between cooking with these wonderful local colorful ingredients, the great dishes we created, good wine and just time to hangout and relax playing games, I'd say this was a great Friday night worth repeating.

me, myself and I

My name is Abby and I'm a foodie. I love to eat, drink, cook, talk and read about food. This is going to be my first attempt at writing about these experiences and sharing them with you. By trade, I'm a new professional in the field of nutrition and dietetics. I currently work in research at the University of Vermont overseeing subject recruitment and various testing. I also dabble in consulting part-time for a local physical therapy company which usually involves general healthy eating and overall weight loss, although occasionally the more complicated issue will arise. I also have a background in cooking, working for a few years in pastry and commercial kitchens. Which I must admit, is a little comical that someone that has an interest in health and food truly enjoyed working with pounds of butter, flour and sugar daily. Everyone needs to let loose once and a while and I wanted to be the one taking them to their "happy place".