Desert Truffles

[Bruno Pretto & Paula Vopni]

My next door neighbour was in Syria on an archeologigal expedition. At the 
market he was able to locate some desert truffles for me. He returned with one 
specimen weighing approx. 500 grams, for which he paid $ 10.00. It has a 
smooth outside skin unlike the french truffles. I plan to take some 
photographs of it before consuming it and I will post them on the net.
Can anyone tell me the latin name for this truffle.


  Bruno Pretto, Fun Guy Farm (Toronto,Canada).
      Home page http://www.io.org/~bpretto
      NAMA Trustee for Toronto Mycological Society.
      Secretary Oak Forest Mushroom Association (outdoor shiitake growers).