I lived in Italy for a year during college (and subsequently have returned nearly every year) and fell in love with funghi di bosco (wild mushrooms)... I learned a lot about food from Francesca (my stand-in Italian Nonna) of which the most important thing was -- to use what you have, what ever is in season -- and thus make variations on dishes according to what seasonal produce you can get. I've done dozens of variations on this tart and it always ends up being the star of the show. It doesn't sound as wild or intriguing as most of my recipes but it is truly outrageous. In fact, at Christmas, in the midst of a vast dinner assemblage, three people who claimed to have been averse to mushrooms since day one, insisted it was one of the all-time best things they had ever eaten. Make it without the arugula if you don't have any in your kitchen window or greenhouse, or substitute the parmigiano for gruyere, chevre, pecorino or feta...

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