Hocus-Pocus, and a Beaker of Truffles

By DANIEL PATTERSON


A TRUFFLE by any other name may smell as sweet, but what if that name is 2,4-dithiapentane? All across the country, in restaurants great and small, the “truffle” flavor advertised on menus is increasingly being supplied by truffle oil. What those menus don’t say is that, unlike real truffles, the aroma of truffle oil is not born in the earth. Most commercial truffle oils are concocted by mixing olive oil with one or more compounds like 2,4-dithiapentane (the most prominent of the hundreds of aromatic molecules that make the flavor of white truffles so exciting) that have been created in a laboratory; their one-dimensional flavor is also changing common understanding of how a truffle should taste.

When I discovered truffle oil as a chef in the late 1990’s, I was thrilled. So much flavor, so little expense. I suppose I could have given some thought to how an ingredient that cost $60 an ounce or more could be captured so expressively in an oil that sold for a dollar an ounce. I might have wondered why the price of the oils didn’t fluctuate along with the price of real truffles; why the oils of white and black truffles cost the same, when white truffles themselves were more than twice as expensive as black; or why the quality of oils didn’t vary from year to year like the natural ingredients. But I didn’t. Instead I happily used truffle oil for several years (even, embarrassingly, recommending it in a cookbook), until finally a friend cornered me at a farmers’ market to explain what I had should have known all along. I glumly pulled all my truffle oil from the restaurant shelves and traded it to a restaurant down the street for some local olive oil.

That truffle oil is chemically enhanced is not news. It has been common knowledge among most chefs for some time, and in 2003 Jeffrey Steingarten wrote an article in Vogue about the artificiality of the oils that by all rights should have shorn the industry of its “natural” fig leaf. Instead, the use of truffle oil continued apace. The question is, Why are so many chefs at all price points — who wouldn’t dream of using vanillin instead of vanilla bean and who source their organic baby vegetables and humanely raised meats with exquisite care — using a synthetic flavoring agent?

Part of the answer is that, even now, you will find chefs who are surprised to hear that truffle oil does not actually come from real truffles. “I thought that it was made from dried bits and pieces of truffles steeped in olive oil,” said Vincent Nargi of Cafe Cluny in Manhattan, which made me put down my pen and scratch my head. The flavor of real truffles, especially black, is evanescent, difficult to capture in an oil under the best of circumstances.

But, much as I did for years, chefs want to believe. Stories of sightings of natural truffle oil abound, like a gourmand’s answer to the Easter Bunny or Santa Claus. One chef told me in an excited, slightly conspiratorial tone that Jing Tio of Le Sanctuaire in Santa Monica, Calif., who sells high-quality specialty ingredients to chefs, mixed his own oil to order.


Read the entire story in the New York Times

Tennessee Winery Directory

Apple Barn Wineries
230 Apple Valley Road, Sevierville, TN, 37862

Arrington Vineyards
6211 Patton Road, Arrington, TN, 37014

Beachaven Vineyards & Winery
1100 Dunlop Lane, Clarksville, TN, 37040

Beans Creek Winery
426 Ragsdale Road, Manchester, TN, 37355

Century Farm Winery
1548 Lower Brownsville Road, Jackson, TN, 38301

Chateau Ross Winery, Inc.
5823 Fulton Road, Springfield, TN, 37172

Clinch Mountain Winery
1335 Bullen Valley Road, Thorn Hill, TN, 37881

Countryside Vineyards
658 Henry Harr Road, Blountville, TN, 37617

Highland Manor
2965 South York Highway, Jamestown, TN, 38556

Holly Ridge Winery
486 O'Neil Road, Livingston, TN, 38570

Keg Springs
361 Keg Springs Road, Hampshire, TN, 38461

Long Hollow Winery
665 Long Hollow Pike, Goodlettsville, TN, 37072

Mountain Valley Vineyards
2174 Parkway, Pigeon Forge, TN, 37863

Old Medina Winery
2894 Old Medina Road, Jackson, TN, 38305

Old Millington Vineyard and Winery
6748 Old Millington Road, Millington, TN, 38053

Red Barn Winery and Vineyard
1805 Tanyard Road, Lafayette, TN, 37083

Savannah Oaks Winery and Gift Shop
1817 Delano Road, Delano, TN, 37325

Smoky Mountain Winery
Winery Square, Suite 2, 450 Cherry Street, Gatlinburg, TN, 37738

Stonehaus Winery, Inc.
2444 Genesis Road, Suite 103, Crossville, TN, 38558

Strikers' Premium Winery
480 County Road 172, Athens, TN, 37303

Sumner Crest Winery and Vineyard
5306 Highway 52, Portland, TN, 37148

Tennessee Mountain View Winery
385 Union Grove Road, Charleston, TN, 37310

Tennessee Valley Winery
15606 Hotchkiss Valley Road East, Loudon, TN, 37774

Tri-Star Vineyards and Winery
168 Scales Road, Shelbyville, TN, 37160

Fresh Strawberry Ice Cream

You will need:

2-1/2 cups half-and-half

4 egg yolks

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar

1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1 pint fresh strawberries, hulled and quartered

Pour half-and-half into a heavy saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat. In a bowl, beat egg yolks and half cup of sugar until pale and smooth. Stir one-quarter of hot half-and-half into egg mixture, stirring well. Then pour yolk mixture into warm saucepan. Cook over low heat, stirring constantly, until thick enough to coat a spoon, about 3 minutes. Stir in vanilla. Cool to room temperature and cover with plastic. Refrigerate at least 4 hours.

An hour before making the ice cream, in a bowl, combine berries with 2 tablespoons of sugar and let sit for one hour. Then mash berries with a fork until they are bite-sized. Stir into chilled custard mixture and pour into ice cream maker. Follow manufacturer’s directions. Freeze at least 2 hours before serving.

Yield: 6 servings.

Fresh Strawberry Storage Tips
Strawberries do not continue to ripen after harvest. Therefore, make sure you pick berries that are completely red.

Store the berries unwashed in a single layer on a baking sheet and refrigerate.
Just prior to using, rinse berries under a gentle spray of cool water. Do not cap until after washing.

Get more recipes from the Pick Tennessee Products website.

Fresh Corn Cakes

You will need:

3/4 cup salsa or chopped, seeded and peeled tomatoes, divided

1 cup sweet corn, fresh or frozen

1-1/4 cups Martha White cornbread mix

1 cup sour cream, divided

1 egg, slightly beaten

1/4 cup pine nuts, lightly toasted

Tops of green onions or green bell pepper strips

In a small bowl, combine 1/2 cup of salsa and 1/4 cup of corn. Mix well and set aside. In a medium bowl, combine remaining salsa and corn, cornbread mix, 1/2 cup of sour cream and egg. Mix well. Spray a large nonstick skillet or griddle with cooking spray. Heat over medium heat until hot. Drop batter by tablespoonfuls into skillet. Cook 2 minutes on each side or until golden brown. Serve with remaining sour cream and salsa-corn mixture. Sprinkle with pine nuts and green onions.

Yield 12 servings.

Note: corn cakes can be kept warm in a 200-degree oven until serving time.

Get more delicious, Tennessee recipes on the Pick Tennessee Products website.

Vince Sings to the Undies

In a new song and video, serious musician Vince Gill sings the praises of underwear with so much passion that you'd think he was crooning about a doughnut.

In "Daddy Was the Apple of My Eye," Vince sings, "No castle in the South of France/but what we had were underpants/That made us feel like royalty." Duet partner and mono-monikered Apple then sings, "his hands were hard/his waist band soft." The video also features several other grown men dressed in fruit costumes playing instruments.

Read the Beverly Keel article in the Tennessean

A Southern sound check along the 'Music Highway'

From Elvis' Graceland to the Grand Ole Opry, America's legends sing a siren song along Tennessee's fabled Memphis-to-Nashville route.

By Robert Hilburn
Special to The Los Angeles Times


Memphis, Tennessee
Knowing how obsessed Elvis fans can be, I wasn't surprised when my wife and I drove up to the Heartbreak Hotel and found, true to the song's lyrics, that it was actually "down at the end of Lonely Street" and that the desk clerk was "dressed in black."

Our room was lined with photos of the King, and two TV channels were devoted 24/7 to Elvis Presley's music and movies. And, as expected, the souvenir shop contained such Elvis novelties as "Love Me Tender" tea sets and copies of the work shirt that a teenage Presley wore when he drove a truck for Crown Electric. (Guess which one I bought.)

But one thing that did surprise me on this, the first night of our five-day Memphis and Nashville music tour, was the Elvis look-alike chatting it up in the lobby. You might expect an official greeter in a Vegas skyscraper but hardly at a modest, 128-room place like this.

It wasn't until I saw him chowing down on biscuits and gravy at the complimentary breakfast the next morning that I realized the laugh was on me. The guy wasn't a hotel employee but another guest, which brings us back to the point about obsessed Elvis fans.

Read the entire article in the L.A. Times

Bush, Buns and the Border

By DEB RIECHMANN
The Associated Press
NASHVILLE, Tenn.

At a town-hall style meeting, Bush also rebuffed a question about whether he would consider pardoning two Border Patrol agents in prison for the cover-up of the shooting of a drug trafficker in Texas.

"No, I won't make you that promise," Bush told a woman who asked about a possible pardon. Many Republicans in Congress have said the men should not have been convicted and have criticized the federal U.S. attorney for even prosecuting the agents.

"I know it's an emotional issue but people need to look at the facts. These men were convicted by a jury of their peers after listening to the facts" as presented by U.S. Attorney Johnny Sutton, said Bush. Bush called Sutton a friend.

The president also toured a bun bakery here, and used the business to illustrate a warning to Congress that he'd veto any government spending bill that he thinks is excessive.

"You can't keep making buns if the Democrats take all your dough," Bush joked in a speech shortly after taking in the aroma of fresh bread at the bakery, which supplies fast-food restaurants.


Read the entire article in the Washington Post

Rock of aged

Seasoned performers keep packing in the fans at area concert venues

By David Lindquist
david.lindquist@indystar.com


Cincinnati Reds outfielder George Foster won the National League Most Valuable Player award in 1977, the same year Jimmy Buffett reached the Top 10 with his hit "Margaritaville."

The passage of time has made it impossible for 58-year-old Foster to play baseball in front of thousands of paying customers in 2007, but 60-year-old Buffett continues to perform tropical-themed tunes for sellout crowds in the nation's largest concert venues.

Forging an emotional bond with listeners and creating a festive atmosphere in concert are two tickets to career longevity, according to music-industry experts and fans.

Buffett, specifically, is known for playing concerts where his loyalists -- commonly termed "Parrotheads" -- wear grass skirts, floral shirts and inflatable sharks as accessories.

"These (shows) have become more than a night out," says Dave Clark, vice president of marketing for concert promoter Live Nation.


Read the entire story in the Indy Star

Let's clear the air at Arcade

By GAIL KERR

There's a warning sign at the Fifth Avenue entrance of Nashville's historic downtown Arcade, between Walgreens and Phillip's Delicatessen.

The sign forbids "running, playing, disorderly or alarming conduct." No radios. No CD players. In fact, the Arcade prohibits "any behavior that may cause injury to oneself or others."

The sign lies. Because it is perfectly fine to smoke your brains out there, and share the smoke with everyone else.

Read the full story in the Tennessean

Hit the Road with Phil Lesh this Fall

Sat-Sep-22
Santa Barbara County Bowl
Santa Barbara, CA
6:00

Sun-Sep-23
The Greek Theater
Berkeley, CA
3:00

Fri-Sep-28
The Phillmore
Denver, CO
8:00

Sat-Sep-29
Red Rocks Amphitheater
Denver, CO
7:30

Sun-Sep-30
Paolo Soleri
Santa Fe, NM
6:00

Tue-Oct-02
The Pageant
St. Louis, MO
7:30

Wed-Oct-03
Uptown Theater
Kansas City, MO
7:30

Fri-Oct-05
The Riviera Theater
Chicago, IL (18+ only)
8:00

Sat-Oct-06
The Riviera Theater
Chicago, IL (18+ only)
8:00

Sun-Oct-07
The Riviera Theater
Chicago, IL (18+ only)
8:00

Tue-Oct-09
The Orpheum Theater
Boston, MA
7:30

Wed-Oct-10
The Orpheum Theater
Boston, MA
7:30

Fri-Oct-12
Tweeter Waterfront
Camden, NJ
8:00

Sat-Oct-13
Charlottesville Pavilion
Charlottesville, VA
7:00

Sun-Oct-14
The Echo Project
Atlanta, GA
7:00

Tue-Oct-16
Lyric Opera House
Baltimore, MD
7:30

Thu-Oct-18
Shea's Performing Arts Center
Buffalo, NY
7:00

Fri-Oct-19
Mohegan Sun Arena
Uncasville, CT
7:00

Sat-Oct-20
Glens Falls Civic Center
Glens Falls, NY
8:00

Sun-Oct-21
War Memorial at Oncenter
Syracuse, NY
7:00

Wed-Oct-31
Nokia Theater Times Square
New York, NY
8:00

Thu-Nov-01
Nokia Theater Times Square
New York, NY
8:00

Fri-Nov-02
Nokia Theater Times Square
New York, NY
8:00

Sat-Nov-03
Nokia Theater Times Square
New York, NY
8:00

Mon-Nov-05
Nokia Theater Times Square
New York, NY
8:00

Tue-Nov-06
Nokia Theater Times Square
New York, NY
8:00

Thu-Nov-08
Nokia Theater Times Square
New York, NY
8:00

Fri-Nov-09
Nokia Theater Times Square
New York, NY
8:00

Sat-Nov-10
Nokia Theater Times Square
New York, NY
8:00

Phil has a MESSAGE about his upcoming tour.

Chick Corea and Bela Fleck

Tonight I watched Bela Fleck and Chick Corea on the Tavis Smiley show. They talked about music and also played some amazing music. They had some amazing chemistry together. I hope they do a show together in Nashville, I'll be there.

A walk on the Wilder side of life

Webb Wilder works hard, rocks hard, eats hard, sleeps hard, he grew big and he wears glasses ('cause he needs 'em). Heck, he'd better live like that -- because as his fans well know, that's the singer's credo. And evidence of all that hard stuff is everywhere in his two-bedroom Nashville apartment.

more of the article...

1. If you had to save one "thing" from your home, what would it be? The guitar I use the most in the band, a "Frankenstein" (made from various after-market parts) Fender telecaster type of guitar. That particular one has the autographs of Chet Atkins, Duane Eddy, James Burton, Scotty Moore, Hank Garland, Jimmy Johnson (Muscle Shoals), Don Helms, Bill Kirchen and Redd Volkaert.



2. One thing on a wall in your living room: Framed, original lobby card for "Bells of Colorado" starring Roy Rogers and Dale Evans. Roy and Dale autographed it to me personally when I met them in California. My then manager, Willie Perkins knew I was gonna meet Roy and had the lobby card sent out to my publicist at the time who helped set the whole thing up. It was all really cool.Roy Rogers was my first hero and the first prominent media figure that I admired. Keith Richards feels the same way. Ask him! Anyway, meeting him and Dale was a dream come true. Roy Rogers is the "King of the Cowboys" just like Elvis is the "King of Rock and Roll." (The "Roy" on the guitar is a coincidence...or is it?)

3. Do any walls in your home match the color of your eyes? Sorta. The living room is kind of a sick shade of green.

4. Best furniture bargain you ever got and where'd you get it? My golden oak hall tree with cow horns. [I] got the cowboy hall tree from an antiques mall in Adams, Tenn., and brought it home in a horse trailer.

To read the entire article, please visit Metromix in the Chicago Tribune.

5 Observations on D.C.

1. Aircraft - With the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport located a couple miles south of the Mall on the Potomac's western edge, commercial planes are an almost constant presence. On the three days I was in D.C. planes took off to the north and west, flying low over the Jefferson Memorial (above), the western edge of the mall, and Arlington Cemetery. These three areas are home to monuments, places of remembrance and reverence, so I was surprised to almost always have the sound of engines overhead, be it planes or helicopters.


3. Grand Streets - Grand MetroThe streets in D.C. are extremely wide, helping to give the place its monumentality and scale that makes people feel small in the face of the government. One thing these wide streets enable are similarly grand underground stations for the Metro. Unlike many of the stations in New York that are constrained by not only street widths but other service snaking their way underground, the D.C. stations are beautifully spacious, aided by dramatic, indirect lighting illuminating the concrete vaults. Interestingly, the light levels are lower in D.C. than New York, though the feeling of security is greater, achieved via the large, open spaces.


To see the rest of this list, visit the archidose blog. It is an architectural blog.

Bon Jovi in Nashville

It's a Superlative Sunday