Truffles are the fruiting body of a fungus closely related to mushrooms that, starting in spring, form several inches underground at the base of certain trees. They grow best within a swath that extends from just south of Madrid to the center of France and includes some of the famous truffle regions in both France and Italy. Truffles are fully formed by around June and continue to mature through the summer and into the fall.
Each year, from early November through Valentine’s Day (and sometimes into early March) a variety of pigs and truffle-sniffing canines throughout Europe are busy rooting up prized varieties of truffles. Truffles possess some of the most seductive, enigmatic and coveted flavors on earth. Their high price is driven by an inability to cultivate them, their limited area of growth and how difficult they are to harvest.