A short time later, having swapped his small basement workspace for the dining room above it, I was ready to test his theory. Served alongside a succulent osso bucco-style veal shank and drizzled with the cooking juices of the meat, I scooped up a forkful of sügeli. Similar in size and shape to southern Italy's orecchiette pasta, but with the texture and taste of a dumpling, the shells were the ideal shape to mop up the salty, flavoursome broth-like sauce. Inscribed on the list of France's patrimoine culturel immatériel (intangible cultural heritage) since 2009, sügeli is cucina bianca's most celebrated dish. Other "more elaborate" recipes, as Teisseire described them, include green, lasagne-like strips called lausagne made from wild spinach, eggs, flour, salt and small quantities of potato and olive oil; and tantiflusa, a tart filled with potatoes, leeks and squash. Of course, cheese from local sheep figures prominently, too: alongside the hard tomme-style variety, brousse, a pungent cream cheese made from whey is a speciality of the local Brigasque breed and is often melted down into a sauce to accompany sügeli.

According to modern border lines, La Brigue is one of France's most eastern outposts. Italy is within touching distance – less than 8km away as the crow flies. In reality, however, the concept of nationality is much more fluid for the current population of 800, some of whom were born before the village passed from Italian into French hands in a post-World War Two treaty signed in 1947. When it did, a collection of six mountain hamlet communities, including La Brigue, was cut in two administratively but not culturally. This was evident, as tables of Algerian War (1954-62) veterans and their wives sharing the dining room with me at lunchtime proved. As they gathered to mark Armistice Day (November 11), their renditions of traditional Piedmontese songs were a rousing soundtrack to my meal. "This is still an important local custom because, until 1947, the village was part of Piedmont," Teisseire told me. Teisseire, who was born and raised in La Brigue, ran the local pizzeria until the opportunity came to take over the inn on the main square eight years ago. This new start gave him pause to reflect. "I asked myself, what exactly is our local cuisine?" he