Traditionally, truffles are kept in a glass container with eggs. And when you cook your eggs, the flavor is already within.

December is in France the right month to find black truffles. If you have never tasted them, they are very different from white Italian truffles and are cooked with risotto, scrambled eggs, or eaten on toasted country bred with melted butter and salt. They are a delicacy and can be found wild in Lubéron and Dordogne or grown, as is the case with Baron de la Truffe’s production in Touraine. Founded in 2011, the company is based on 60 acres which were planted in 1996 with Tuber Melanosporum.

Serge Desazars, founder of  Baron de La Truffe, unearths a large truffle

You need to wait for seven years to get your first truffle and then a specially trained dog to dig them (it used to be done by pigs). They are picked every day between November and mid February, then cleaned and sold direct from the farm.  If you want to cook something original for Christmas, I recommend oeufs cocotte with slices of black truffles. For eight you will need a maximum of 80 g.

With ten grams of black truffle per peson, you can cook anything lovely

Take a ramequin that goes in the oven, put a slice of truffle, an egg, another slice and heavy cream. Cook in a bain marie in the hot oven for 15 minutes maximum. And your dinner will be off to a good start. (Barondelatruffe.com, 100€ for 90 g appr.)