Tuesday, April 28, 2009

belote lunch

We went back to the ferme d'ambrune et polalye (duck farm) on Sunday for our annual belote lunch. This is the home of a guy in the village who has turned an old barn into a restaurant where he also keeps ducks and grows fruit - so duck and red berries make more than a guest appearance on the menu.

A platter of rillettes of duck arrived with our apéros - small squares of home-made bread topped with fine shreds of moist duck meat. Then there was an asparagus mousse followed by a medley of duck en salade: slivers of smoked duck, gésiers (gizzards) and thick wedges of pâté au fois gras lounging on long stems of freshly-picked lettuce. I could happily have lounged on some lettuce myself at that point - and that was just the entrée.


After the plates were cleared, several of us repaired to the terrace with the smokers in a bid to put some distance between courses. When we came back, there was breast of chicken and girolles mushrooms with gratin dauphinois (potatoes cooked with cream and Gruyère cheese), then cheese, and at the final hurdle, sponge cake with raspberry cream.

Top Modèl's girlfriend (who has about as much padding as a swivel chair) must have doubled her weight!

2 comments:

corine/ hidden in france said...

You have a lovely blog. I'd love to add you to my blog roll.. and read you from now on.

take care,

corine

Laetitia said...

Beautiful pics!!!!!!!! Love it!