Although in Tuscany we are most famous for our White Truffles, they are not the only types of truffles to be found or served in our region. Here is a brief look at our varieties of this rare and costly tuber, ending with the Tartufo Bianco, the king of them all.

Nero Pregiato : This truffle has a wrinkled, black outer layer that is dotted with tiny warts. Its pulp is of a black-violet shade and its veining is lighter colored than the pulp. The Nero Pregiato varies in size, and has a very pleasant fragrance. These are found mostly around Florence, Siena, and Arezzo, and they mature beginning in November and continuing to mid-March. After the Tartufo Bianco, these are the second most prized or our truffles.

Nero Uncinato : This truffle is found all over Tuscany, and it is known by its black, warty outer layer and chocolate brown pulp with numerous, branching, light-colored veining. Both its flavor and fragrance are intense.

Scorzone : Also possessing a rough, black, warty outer layer, this truffle has yellowish pulp with light-colored veining. It too is of varying size, and it can also be found all over Tuscany. Both its fragrance and flavor are pleasantly mushroomy.

Bianchetto or Marzuolo : This is a small truffle tending toward a red-gold outer color with a light-colored pulp. It has a garlicky flavor and is found along the Tuscany coast.

The Uncinato, the Scorzone, and Marzuolo are not highly prized truffles, or especially valuable. They are used often, but not with the reverence and renown of our Tartufo Bianco.

Tartufo Bianco : the king of Tuscan truffles, this smooth tuber with a yellow outer layer is also known as the "noble" truffle. It is highly prized for its rarity and wonderful flavor and extremely pleasant aroma. The Tartufo Bianco is found in varying sized, and its pulp also varies in color, ranging from a faint nut-brown to dark brown. These mature from mid-October to the end of December. They are most typically found in the Val D'Elsa, the Crete Senesi, and around San Miniato. However, they are also sometimes found in the Mugello, in Casentino, and in the Val Tiberina. The Tartufo Bianco lives in symbiosis with a number of trees, including the walnut, oak, poplar, willow, hornbeam, pine and linden.

As we mentioned, the two areas of Tuscany most rich in our valuable White Truffles are the lands around San Miniato in the province of Pisa, and also around San Giovanni d'Asso which is south of Siena. Every year, both these towns have autumn truffle festivals which draw truffle-loving visitors, culinary experts, and truffle merchants from all over the world. During this time of year, kitchens throughout our region celebrate the truffle with a variety of dishes utilizing this costly tuber whose heady aromas mark the days of these gourmet festivals.

But in case you don't know, or would like to explain to someone else, let us take a quick look at just what, exactly, a truffle is. A truffle is really a rather ugly, wart-flecked fungus that grows on the roots of trees, just below the surface of the ground. They're approximately golf ball sized, but lumpy and not symmetrical, as a ball would be. And, the size of a truffle can vary from that of a pea to the size of an orange. Our most prized truffles come in a shade of pale yellow, but the tuber comes in many colors, including so dark a brown that it is often called black.

These are the outer colors of the truffle, but it is the inner flesh that is truly prized. Inside the thin crusty outer layer is the gleba, the pulp, which begins as white, and ripens into darker shades until the truffle is ripe, or matured. As we mentioned above, truffles grow in symbiosis with a variety of trees, and they can be as far below the surface as twelve inches, but that is about the greatest depth at which they can grow; they are usually closer to the surface of the ground under a tree. Truffle hunting pigs were once the norm for finding these hidden treasures, but because the pigs so loved to eat the bounty they were hunting, most truffle hunters today use specially trained dogs.

Attempts to cultivate truffles have largely failed; the combination of rare soils, the right tree roots, the proper fecund conditions and more have proved to be just too costly to be practicable. The truffle absorbs water and minerals from the tree roots, and the type of tree on which the truffle grows influences the tuber's flavor, aroma and pungency.

Truffles have longed been prized by gourmets, and they were known and coveted in the days of ancient Rome and Greece. In ancient Rome, they were called tuberi. Pliny the Elder made reference to them, saying, "truffles are among those things that are born and grow but can’t be planted." Interestingly, many ancients were confused as to whether truffles might not be animals rather than plants.

Pope Gregory IV, during the first century, said that he needed truffles to strengthen him in battle. Also during the first century, Saint Ambrose wrote a letter thanking a bishop for sending him a box of truffles. By the 18th century, it was difficult to find a kitchen in a royal court in Europe that was without truffles. Princes, aristocrats and the wealthy were mad for truffles. Noblemen all over France and Italy participated in truffle hunting, using dogs and pigs in their quest to discover these delightful little lumps. And in the 19th century, the great composer Rossini said that he had wept only three times during his life: when his first opera was booed; when he first heard Paganini play the violin; and when a truffle stuffed turkey fell out of his rowboat and into the Seine !

It needs to be noted that truffles don't carry a strong flavor of their own, but are known to enhance just about any savory dish they are added to by magnifying, absorbing, and altering their taste to complement that dish.

Before using fresh truffles, they should be brushed under gently running water to remove any loose, clinging soil. Truffles can be kept for about 10 days by wrapping them loosely in paper towels and keeping them refrigerated.

While there are a variety of truffle-based products on the market, we are looking here at using fresh truffles. The finest varieties, including the Tartufo Bianco, will be quite expensive. However, they will add a delight to your table that is hard to quantify. They should be sliced paper thin, and cover the dish they are being used in. Tools are available at kitchen shops for slicing/shaving the truffles. Less fine truffles, such as some of those mentioned in our first article above, can be minced or chopped, and browned gently in oil with garlic and herbs of your choice. This can then be used as a garnish for bruschetta, steaks, or pasta.

Thinly shaved truffles are wonderful gracing scrambled eggs, mashed potatoes, risottos, pasta dishes and polenta. One simply needs to shave truffles over the top of any of these dishes.

White truffles go beautifully with all of the above mentioned dishes. You can also consider making a truffle omelet by adding the truffle shavings just as the omelet needs turning, then, rather than turning it, finishing it in a 350 degree oven for just a few minutes. You would not want to apply direct heat from the bottom of the skillet to the truffles.

Truffle oil is a great addition to any dish which you will be finishing with shavings of fresh truffles. For truffled mashed potatoes, substitute a bit of the truffle oil for some of the butter, and then shave the truffles over the mashed potatoes just as you finish whipping and mixing them.

For risottos, truffles and truffle oil can be incorporated at the last minute, and the same is true for polenta. Just make the dishes as you normally would, adding the truffles at the final stirring, being sure to be gentle and not to use heat directly on the tubers. I like truffles on simple pasta dishes, shaved over them before serving. Adding truffles to any pasta dish that is strongly flavored, or any strongly flavored dish at all for that matter, is not advised, for they are delicate and would be wasted.

Recipe

• Green Beans With Truffles

• 1 pound Fresh Green Beans

• Tuscan Extra Virgin Olive Oil

• Truffle Oil

• Sea Salt or Coarse Salt

• White Pepper, freshly ground in possible

• White Truffle Shavings

After blanching the green beans in boiling water for a few minutes, drain them and place in a sauté pan with the olive oil. You want need much, just a tablespoon or so. Add the beans and sauté over low heat. As the beans warm (you are not cooking them, but rather coating them in olive oil and imparting the flavors of the other ingredients) drizzle with a bit of truffle oil. Add the salt to taste, and just a small bit of white pepper. When the beans are flavored and warmed through, shave the white truffle over the dish and serve immediately. Delicious!