Elle Esse Italian Truffle Tapenade (Italy)

Well let me start off by saying that until I tried this product two years ago, I considered myself to be a "truffle virgin". I had never really tasted them, even though Tass raved on and on about their brilliance. Elle Esse Italian Truffle Tapenade was my first truffle experience, and whilst today I've tried everything from oils and salts to even the fresh stuff, I still stand by this to be my very favourite truffle product - a big call.

PRODUCT

Traditional tapenade is a popular food in the south of France as an hors d'euvre, spread on bread and usually consists of finely chopped olives, capers, anchovies and olive oil. The ingredients differ in this product as Elle Elle Italian Truffle Tapenade has primarily mushrooms, olives and oil which will give you a great idea of consistency and texture, but of course the truffle dominates.

TASTE

I often find the smell of Elle Esse Tapenade to be much stronger than the actual taste but much like fresh truffles, you only need the tiniest hint for the flavour to really hit you.

The closest thing I can compare the flavour of truffles to is mushroom, but truffles are much wilder, earthier and richer. The flavour goes great with anything else earthy like cheeses, steak, risotto and pasta, but on the other hand can be used to intensify lighter foods such as seafood - there isn't much you can't pair truffles or truffle tapenade with.

VARIETY

Variety is one of the best things about Elle Esse Italian Truffle Tapenade. My favourite way to enjoy it is simply stirred into plain pasta - easier than even Spaghetti Bolognese, but if you serve this to anyone who is none-the-wiser, it will seriously seem like you've been slaving over this dish for hours on end.

Another fantastic way to enjoy it is mixed into scrambled eggs to kick your breakfast up a notch.

If you're serving a cheese platter, the tapenade is excellent spread over a Camembert or Brie (try Superior Fruit's Truffle Brie to experience this pairing!).

I have also been known to use is as a sauce with my steak - so heavenly!