100g, $25.00
available at fine food stores. We bought it at The Spice Trader in Toronto.  
for more information or to order visit http://www.thespicetrader.ca/

Last week Shelf Life attended a fun culinary thrash at The Drake Hotel; the main event was the First Annual Toronto Food Photography Awards, but there was a parallel occasion that whetted our appetites – the flavoured popcorn competition. Five contestants from Toronto’s food community brought their best exploding maize recipes, and when only the final, stubborn kernels remained one man stood triumphant: Matt DeMille of the restaurant Parts And Labour, who won with his foie gras dipped kernels. Dazzled by this, Shelf Life immediately resolved to make our favourite snack more interesting. To that end, we bought this truffle salt to sex up our popcorn, and to see where else it would take us. We found a box of our favourite microwave treat (Betty Crocker’s Pop Secret Light – check out the Shelf Life popcorn test here) popped away, and then sprinkled, with gratifying results. This truffle salt does in fact give popcorn a funky, earthy, umami-ish punch – a boost to gourmet level. Shelf Life is dying to try this product with, say, melted butter, to enhance baked potatoes or steamed vegetables, or to dunk lobster or crab. One question remains: is this magic dust worth 25 bucks? Certainly any trace of truffle – in this case, the Italian Black variety – entails expense; that’s the nature of the beast. But if you’re like us, and popcorn is a true friend (especially during long winter evenings), then this truffle salt is a small price to pay for upgrading a pal (bonus: a little goes a long way).

FOUR STARS****