Snail's egg caviar, anyone? It may sound like a challenge to the taste buds, but the salty, pink-white delicacy could be gracing hundreds of French tables this Christmas.
Caviar is a byword for the festive season in France, while a dozen escargots - or snails - cooked in garlic and parsley butter are a much-loved staple.
A couple of snail farmers from Soissons, in the Picardie region northeast of Paris, have found a way to roll two delicacies into one: their snail caviar, called De Jaeger, hit the shelves in October.
Dominique and Sylvie Pierru set up their snail farm in 2004 and started work on a caviar recipe. The next three years were spent perfecting a way to harvest the eggs of their 50,000 gastropods, reared on an open-air diet of herbs and cereals.
The result: small, cream-coloured pearls that burst on the palate to reveal what the producers describe as 'subtle autumn flavours with woody notes'.
The Pierrus recommend serving the caviar on a sliver of toast, at room temperature, lightly peppered with a touch of sour cream - and naturally a glass of chilled champagne.