On the trail of...

... truffles, white truffles to be exact (aka Tuber Magnatum Pico). Those pictured above (that's Stefano's hand) are black truffles, not quite as good, but still pretty damn tasty.

It may not feel like it here in balmy Italy, but we are in the middle of white truffles season, the perfect excuse every October and November to go foraging through the woods in search of this ridiculously expensive tuber. But worth every penny! Last year, we went with Alberto and Marcelo, two local tartufaii, in the woods below my house in Amandola. Yep, Amandola is one of the few places on earth where these blessed organisms grow. I wrote about it for The Guardian. The story is out today. You can read it here.