Truffle Haiku

An ode to a truffle? Too long. A sonnet, perhaps? Or maybe a quatrain would be closer. Better yet…haiku. Seventeen syllables, three lines, unrhymed.

With February heralding the beginning of truffle season, my friends at Springwater Farm decided the proper way to celebrate this subterranean fungal fruit was to hold a haiku contest. Winners were announced yesterday, and now's your chance to vote for the People's Choice Award among the entries.

So scan, analyze or just close your eyes and point at the screen to pick your favorite. Leave a name, the number of your choice in the Comments below, with a reason for your choice if you like. The haiku with the most votes will win a prize for the writer, and winner will be drawn (and a prize awarded) from those who voted for it. Both will be announced at noon on Feb. 20, one week from today, so pick your winner now and check back on Saturday!

1: (Restaurant Haiku)
Holy crap! What's that?!
Walk-in smells overwhelming
Truffles must be here

2:
Your aroma draws me
Beneath tall oak trees
I dig to find you

3:
Small soft clods of soil,
White in the middle, surprise!
Added to dinner.

4:
Truffle jewels bloom
Hidden beneath sturdy Firs
Ruffled morsels' musk

5: (What Happened to The Truffle Pig)
The snout in loam, digs,
nostril-cringe, quiver and bite!
"So we ate the pig."

4:
Earthy redolence
In a bubble-gum shaped ball
Makes my senses sing!

5:
Looks like a pebble
Found hugging a tree root
But worth more than gold.

6:
What amazing luck!
I have found priceless black pearls
Treasures on my tongue.

7:
You said you weren't sure
Then I fed you some truffles
All those years ago

8:
I see overnight
a mushroom grew as quickly
as my love for you

9:
from earth, death decay
spring forth black orbs buttery
give life to my pan

10:
I love mushrooms lots
Into the pot they get tossed
Butter, truffles-yum!

11:
Who can resist you?
Dark, musky, nutty truffle
Aphrodisiac

12:
You might mistake it
For an ordinary stone
Black truffle jewel

13:
I am so sorry
I ate the last black truffle
it was rich, perfect

14:
Alternate dimension
Where truffles taste like they smell
Shampoo like candy

15: (Disappointment Haiku)
Found it while digging
Thought it could be a truffle
But it was a rock

16:
Despite not having
upturned nose nor pot belly
I love those truffles

17:
Out hunting truffles
Didn’t find a gosh-darn thing
Just a nature walk

18: (The Naming Haiku)
shiitake, morel
chanterelle, lobster, yellowfoot
truffles: my favorite

19:
If I stole truffles
You could say I was not nice
But still a fun guy

20:
No matter the smell
funky fresh like ripened feet
tasting of heaven

21:
Your cooking is bad.
Abismal in fact. Even
truffles won’t save you

22:
Savory truffles
So delicious in my mouth
Truffle pig happy

23:
The pig smells like hay
The rain comes and goes away
With truffles to gain

24:
Water-gilled rain-eater
Wearer of the dirt hat and compost cap
Umbrella babies eaten

25:
Not quite wet-sock like
Truffles are better than that
Dirty swamp muck. Sweet.

26:
Mushrooms grow through grass
we hunt for truffles and love
Mushrooms are my love

27:
Black truffles are great!
But I wonder where are the
Philosopher’s stones?

28:
Mushrooms come from ground
Shiitake, morels, weird shapes
Cure my fever, shroom

29:
Would a truffle by
Any other name smell as
Sweet? Sweet love fungus.

30:
Earthy yummy taste
Truffles in food great to eat
oil or salt or plain

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Since I completely forgot about doing the drawing last weekend (and I beg your forgiveness), I had Dave draw a name from a hat. The winner of the packet of Springwater Farm's Oregon truffle salt is…wait for it…Margaret, who chose the People's Choice winner, Haiku #7! Please e-mail me your address and I'll get it in the mail. Thanks everyone for entering!