Truffles. About as close to culinary heaven as you can get, right? Well, truffle oil is about as close as you can get without spending $1,000 for a pound of white truffles. The brand that I get it is D. Dalla Terra and was $10.99 for 2.1oz at Fairway in Manhattan. I know, pricey right? But you only use a couple drops,and it turns everything you cook into a gourmet experience. My favorite recipe to use it in is pizza  - maybe something like this:  http://www.thetrufflehoney.com/2011/10/pizza-bianca-with-swiss-chard.html

I bought this pasta on a whim from one of my favorite specialty food stores in Manhattan, Zabar's.  Benedetto di Cavalieri's pasta is made in Italy by slowly passing the dough through special bronze dies designed to create each shape and give the pasta a rough-textured surface to which sauce clings rather than slipping off. Other cuts include: Casareci and Lumache, Maccheroni, Ruote Pazze, Farfalle and Fusilli. Product of Italy.

My favorite is the Lumache - the tubes are perfect for sopping up meat sauces. Here is a great recipe that really features this incredible ingredient.