Goat Cheese Truffles with Peperonata

Stewed peppers, tomatoes and onions form a classic Italian peperonata. Batali's is made simply with stewed sweet peppers and sherry vinegar.

In a skillet, heat 1/4 cup of the olive oil. Add the peppers and cook over moderately high heat, stirring occasionally, until they start to brown, about 8 minutes. Add the vinegar and cook over low heat until the peppers are tender, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and transfer to a bowl.
Prepare a bowl of ice water. In a pot of boiling water, blanch the arugula until wilted, about 10 seconds. Transfer to the ice water to chill. Drain the arugula and gently squeeze it dry; chop coarsely.
In a small bowl, combine the lemon juice with the remaining 1/4 cup of olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.
Put the goat cheese in a bowl; season with salt and pepper. Using a tablespoon, scoop up the cheese and roll it into 24 balls. Put the fennel seeds, poppy seeds and paprika in bowls. Roll 8 cheese balls in the fennel seeds, 8 in the poppy seeds and 8 in the paprika.
To serve, mound the arugula on 8 plates and top with the bell peppers. Place one of each kind of goat cheese truffle on top of the arugula and drizzle with olive oil. Place a slice of the bread next to the arugula and serve.

Notes Fennel pollen is available in the U.S. from specialty purveyors such as chefshop.com and zingermans.com.