30 June 2012

Three things

Three things — that makes a full day. A market visit, lunch at home, and then dinner in a restaurant. Some driving, some walking, and some sitting.

At the market in Montrichard

Yesterday morning we drove over to the Friday market at Montrichard, mostly just to have a look around and see if we wanted to buy anything. We ended up bringing home apricots, nectarines, apples, strawberries, radishes, beets, a pot of rillettes de porc, a piece of Spanish chorizo, and a bag-in-box of local Sauvignon Blanc wine. Probably other things too, but my memory isn't perfect.

Vegetables, melons, and local goat cheeses

For lunch, we came back home and made a salad using frisée and romaine lettuces from our garden. As garnishes, we had duck gizzards (gésiers de canard confits) and the beets. We also consumed some rillettes and some more of the saucisson from the night before. Oh, and some slices of the chorizo. Late-afternoon naps and walks were taken.

Lunch on the terrace

We were trying to have a light lunch (ha ha ha) because we were going out to dinner last night at the Manoir de Contres. I forgot my camera when we left for the restaurant in the evening, so no pictures of that. If I tell you what we had for dinner, it will sound very American: a Caesar salad with shrimp, prime rib (côte de bœuf) with French fries, and vanilla ice cream for dessert.

I'm not sure what Jill, Walt, and Peter were smiling about...
(and no, I wasn't snorting).

The beef was excellent — rare and tender. The cook brought the two pieces of prime rib to the table and presented them to us before he took them back to the kitchen for cooking. He spent a good amount of time with us, telling us about his career in Paris and about this new restaurant, which he opened only recently. It was another fine evening.

7 comments:

  1. Looks like a fine morning and afternoon, too. Those fresh veggies at the market make a beautiful photo, and so do your gorgeous salads and the inviting terrace table :))

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  2. I am a newcomer to your blog and have enjoyed hearing about the wonderful meals you prepare...but duck gizzards?? Gladys

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  3. "Three questions"
    1. Is this the first time Jill and Peter have visited you in France?
    2. Are those Walt's new glasses?
    3. Why do the drawings of pigs on containers of pork products almost always show them smiling or dancing?

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  4. Dean, Peter has been here half a dozen times over 9 years, and this is Jill's third trip at least. The last visit was two years ago.

    Those are Walt's old sunglasses with new lenses in them since Albany.

    Happy pigs. Laughing cows. Giddy geese. Dancing ducks too. You name it, we got it.

    Hi Gladys, slow-cooked duck gizzards are delicious and tender. We eat every part of the duck except the quack.

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  5. No one will eveer say that you guys don't eat like kings!

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  6. Ken

    The Rosé must have been very good - your glass is empty :-)

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  7. I was being nice and letting J, W, and P have second glasses of the good rosé as I changed over to red... that's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

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