LE DUCK

So. Here we are. Well arrived, shaken off  jet lag and ready to explore the Charente Maritime. If you look at the map of France, search for La Rochelle, go east a bit and you will find where we are situated for the time being.

Our Gite (basically a furnished holiday apartment), is quaint, set inside a complex with two more Gites and the owner's house. They were a huge help to get us settled in quickly, especially with a reliable WiFi connection, so Isabella can go to school right away. We met the other tenants on Halloween evening, it's going to be a great winter here.

Today was our first big shopping trip, besides the basics such as milk, coffee and chocolates.

St. Jean d'Angely has a couple of Superstore" type grocery stores and we went to LeClerc, only because it was the first one I found driving around.

It must be Duck season here. Right at the entrance was a massive display of anything Duck. Whole, parts, fat,  liver, you name it, it was on display. Interesting enough. Let's buy some and cook it.

I went with the easy one, duck breast. Really easy to make, it turned out very nice and tender. Crispy skin too. 

We roasted some potatoes in that rendered fat, with some Mache salad, which to my excitement is pretty common here. A surprisingly good red wine ( my knowledge is less than superficial) with the meal, it made us all want to speak French beyond Oh La la, C'est bon.....

On the way to town, we stopped outside a house that has a For Sale sign on the fence and by pure coincidence, the owner saw us walking around the property and let us in. An amazing place, all empty, grand staircase and all.

But more on that later.....

ANYTHING DUCK SPECIAL

MY CHOICE OF CUT FOR DINNER

RENDERED DUCK FAT. EXCELLENT 

CHECK IT OUT

CUT THE SKIN TO DRAIN FAT AND MAKE IT CRISPY

EH VOILA, MAGNIFIQUE

SERVE WITH SOME ROASTED POTATOES, MACHE SALAD AND RED WINE...