I made the potato-and-onion gratin dish but it didn't work out exactly as planned. The liquid didn't all evaporate as I thought it would, even after 90 minutes in the oven. (The picture here was taken before I put on the top layer of potatoes.)
I had some lardons so I cooked them in a frying pan and put them in with the onions on top of the bottom layer of potatoes. I also put in some thyme along with the bay leaves, plus plenty of black pepper, and I used chicken broth. I had not quite two pounds of potatoes (800 grams) and I used about 5 little onions.
When I thought it was done, there was still a lot of broth in the dish. I sucked it out with a turkey baster and added the broth to the leftover onion soup from the day before. Nothing was wasted, and the potato-onion dish was excellent.
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Yesterday afternoon I took at drive out into the country south of town. The sun had come out and I felt like taking some pictures of something besides food.
Just a couple of miles from our house, on the southwest edge of Saint-Aignan, there's a farm compound that I think is very picturesque. I wonder if the vineyards you can see in the picture belong to this family.
On the road that leads up to the farm, there is a little collection of newer houses. Somebody has built an unusal place, for here -- a house constructed entirely of wood. Here's the little "neighborhood."
Farther out in the country, maybe eight miles south, there's a château called Lestang. I don't know anything about it, except that all the roads leading into the property are posted with Propriété Privée signs. From the main road you get this view.
I haven't found out much about it by googling. Maybe I'll have to go to the town hall in the nearby village and see what information they have. Here's a closeup.
A few miles further south, I came upon the ruins of an old farm. The buildings are all covered in ivy and other climbing plants, and the tile roofs are starting to fall in.
There are 4 or 5 structures on the site. The main house appears to be in the best shape, but even its doors and windows are standing open, and it is obviously abandoned. This must be the old barn.
Just down the road from the ruins, the fields were full of crows (or ravens) feeding. When I approached, they all flew off, and some of them landed in this tree. The image seemed to fit the mood set by the tumble-down farmstead.
Across the way, I could see a more prosperous-looking farm in the distance. The landscape is gently rolling hills, with fields and small wooded areas.
And then I saw this house off in the distance. A lot of these pictures were taken using a telephoto lens.
Yesterday afternoon I took at drive out into the country south of town. The sun had come out and I felt like taking some pictures of something besides food.
Just a couple of miles from our house, on the southwest edge of Saint-Aignan, there's a farm compound that I think is very picturesque. I wonder if the vineyards you can see in the picture belong to this family.
On the road that leads up to the farm, there is a little collection of newer houses. Somebody has built an unusal place, for here -- a house constructed entirely of wood. Here's the little "neighborhood."
Farther out in the country, maybe eight miles south, there's a château called Lestang. I don't know anything about it, except that all the roads leading into the property are posted with Propriété Privée signs. From the main road you get this view.
I haven't found out much about it by googling. Maybe I'll have to go to the town hall in the nearby village and see what information they have. Here's a closeup.
A few miles further south, I came upon the ruins of an old farm. The buildings are all covered in ivy and other climbing plants, and the tile roofs are starting to fall in.
There are 4 or 5 structures on the site. The main house appears to be in the best shape, but even its doors and windows are standing open, and it is obviously abandoned. This must be the old barn.
Just down the road from the ruins, the fields were full of crows (or ravens) feeding. When I approached, they all flew off, and some of them landed in this tree. The image seemed to fit the mood set by the tumble-down farmstead.
Across the way, I could see a more prosperous-looking farm in the distance. The landscape is gently rolling hills, with fields and small wooded areas.
And then I saw this house off in the distance. A lot of these pictures were taken using a telephoto lens.
I think I just put too much liquid in the dish to start with. I believe the recipe I saw said to pour in enough liquid to cover the potatoes and onions. Now I think that was too much. I didn't wash or dry the potato slices because I wanted to starch on them to thicken the liquid, but it didn't anyway. Thank Gloria for the idea.
ReplyDeleteSorry about all thes days of rain. That's how I remember the weather in Normandy that year I spent up there. It's drier here. Glad to hear your trip is all set up.
Ah, how I envy you your country drives. Thanks for bringing us there in pictures. I love the black birds in the bare tree.
ReplyDeleteYou wrote : That's how I remember the weather in Normandy that year I spent up there...
ReplyDeleteTo which I'll reply : Ah, non, alors, tu ne vas pas remettre ça, lol !!!
Thanks for sharing "le souvenir de tes pérégrinations" ;-) ! "Le château de Lestang" dates from the XVIth century, that's all I've found about it... Bises Marie, la Normande, who doesn't put water in her "gratins de légumes méditerranéens", but uses olive oil instead in small quantity...
Hello Marie, sorry for the Normandy bashing! When I got to Rouen in September 1973, the people at the lycée Corneille told me: En Normandie il ne pleut pas beaucoup, mais il pleut souvent!
ReplyDeleteIn Normandy there's no need to add water to anything!
Uh-oh, I'm doing it again. Mes excuses. Bises, Ken
Ken, you dared to write : In Normandy there's no need to add water to anything... !!!
ReplyDeleteAlors, là, tu exagères, lol ! Trop, c'est trop ! GRRRRR !!! Bises quand même. Marie pas rancunière !
Oui, Marie, j'ai osé ! Je te taquine, tu le sais. En fait, je me souviens d'une journée en Normandie pendant laquelle pas une seule goutte de pluie n'est tombée. Le souvenir est vague. T'en souviens-tu ?
ReplyDeleteBises