Risotto, with mushrooms, cep roasted chicken, and summer truffle

Risotto, with mushrooms,
cep roasted chicken, and summer truffle

There are a thousand different ways to make risotto, but how do you make risotto memorable?  In the last twenty years there are four that I can recount in vivid detail:

• In Lucca, we had an amazing barolo risotto with gorgonzola - umami heaven - salty, blue notes, rich, dense, it was utterly heavenly.

Truffled Camembert with Crudités...

Another quick and yummy supper to share - crudités with a baked truffled camembert! Amazing what I rediscover unused in my fridge after Christmas!  Bake the camembert in the oven, then shave a few slices of white truffle over the cheese, and drizzle with some good olive oil - absolutely scummy!

Truffles and Potatoes...

For many years I've read one particular Roux recipe with a combination of awe and longing*. The recipe involved carving a hollow into a potato, into which you would insert a truffle. The potato would then be put back together again to be cooked - when ready it would be sliced into 1/8 ths, a little like a boiled egg. I looked at the photo - I could smell the truffle, I knew what a fantastic combination it would make, but I certainly didn't have a truffle big enough lying around to make this dish - I would have to dream about it for a while...