Turin may not be the first city that jumps to mind when one plans a vacation to Italy, but after a visit there last October it has won a place in my gastronomical heart. Located in the northwest of Italy bordering the Alps, Turin comes with promises of fresh white truffles in the fall and some of the best chocolate in the world. With appetites fit for foodies, 4 days to spare and a pasta-loving toddler in tow, my husband and I decided to visit this industrial city in search for some authentic regional cuisine. As we had already been to Venice where the focus was seafood, and Florence where meat and rich pasta were the stars, it was fascinating for us to experience Italian cuisine that bore little resemblance to the hearty fare we had come to associate it with.

Our first meal in Turin was dinner at a small cafe. We had insisted that our hotel concierge suggest a place frequented by locals. With such few days to spare we did not want to get caught in any tourist traps. I am glad we did so as we dined that night on a spectacular meal the highlight of which was “Agnolotti”. This is a dish very specific to the region comprising parcels of pasta stuffed with beef, much like ravioli but the difference lies in its sauce. Ravioli is usually accompanied by either a heavy marinara sauce or creamy alfredo but Agnolotti is served in a delicate sauce made from the broth of the meat that is used for the stuffing and a touch of butter, topped with freshly grated parmesan. Cheese is never used to stuff the pasta and the sauce is always light in order to not over power the taste of the pasta parcels.

Day two, we decided to focus our food search on the precious white truffles of Alba. I wish we had left this for later, as once we found menus with truffles we were hooked and this was a very expensive habit to nurse. Some may regard truffles as the Birken of fungi, however I disagree as Birkens are highly over-rated. White truffles are anything but. I admit, a part of me wanted to not like them to come back from the land of the white truffles claiming that I cannot understand what the hype is about, but sadly this was not the case. Something about the earthiness of the white truffles made me want them on everything that was served. My gluttony was chided by one of the chefs who explained that truffles must be enjoyed only with something that has understated flavours such as plain buttered pasta or fried eggs. I did have my way by requesting them on my steak but realized how erroneous it was. The beef completely overwhelmed the truffles and it was a waste of some hard-earned euros.

Truffles are either black or white, with white being more precious. They are extremely rare and are a product of a symbiotic relationship within the roots of certain trees in specific areas during specific times of the year (typically September to December) Truffle hunters, accompanied by dogs, that have been especially trained to sniff out truffles are the only people who can find them. We were very interested in going on a truffle hunt but as the toddler may not have enjoyed four hours of a dog sniffing at trees we decided to leave it for a future date.