Postcards from the Lot

Friday, June 5, 2015

A Warm Welcome to Bariquel ... a French Gite

#Sarrians#lebariquel#Provence#Vaucluse

We've travelled quite a lot this trip not like our usual long stays that we started doing a couple of years ago.

We've had five different home bases over the seven weeks.

For our last three weeks we decided to head to the Vaucluse Dept. in Provence.

A little tour of where we are staying in Sarrians ...

We have rented this lovely apartment on the "1er etage" of this villa ... which is actually on the second floor.

The friendly, helpful owners Jean-Marie and Martine live on site but total privacy is assured.

This is our side of the house with stairs that takes you to our entry ...

On our arrival we were greeted with some wonderful treats ...

and oh yes I now have the recipe for the delicious apple cake that Martine had served us.

The layout of the apartment works very well, I even commented to Monsieur Honey "This is all we really need, I could live here".

Through the double French door entry you arrive in the "Salon" (approx.16'x40') that serves as the living room and dining room. It is light and airy with big windows overlooking the park like yard.

The kitchen is fully equipped and more ... it also has another table and two chairs that can be used as a breakfast nook.

Down the hallway there is the comfortable bedroom, the bath/ shower room and the all important washing machine!

Our large upper terrace ...

The lower shaded courtyard ... a favourite spot for a quiet read or evening aperos in the shade of the large "French" maple tree.

The property is beautifully landscaped and park like.

We are surrounded by giant oleander plants and wonderful container gardens filled with colourful plants.

There are five "Olive trees" on the property that every November the owners harvest and take the olives to a mill where they get 20 litres of olive oil.

In our little French kitchen there is a bottle of this delicious olive oil which we have put to good use.

There are quiet shaded seating areas throughout the property ...

The following photos are of the owners' courtyard ...

where we enjoyed an evening of aperitifs and nibbles!

The location is situated perfectly for visiting many other Provençal villages, towns and cities.

If you've been following our adventure you will know that many places are within a half hour to hour drive and a further 100 kms lies Marseille and the Mediterranean.

If you are looking for a home base to explore this part of Provence ... this could be a perfect option.

Le Bariquel

303, Boulevard du Comté d'Orange

84260 Sarrians

le-bariquel@orange.fr

For further info ... www.homeaway.com # 6605308

Note: I am not compensated / paid in any way to write this review.

This is my and Monsieur Honey's personal opinions and views about the property & location.

Thursday, June 4, 2015

Madame Clare's Scallop Salad

#thegreat5daysaladchallenge#Beaucaillou#Degagnac##Scallopsalad

Early in our adventure we spent our second week in the Lot Valley, sharing our time with our "French Connection" friends in Prayssac and "Belgian Connection" friends in Dégagnac.

While in Dégagnac, Madame M. and Msr. Guy hosted a dinner where they invited Madame Clare (the owner of Beaucaillou) ... the cottage we rented for three months in 2013) to join us.

It was a jovial "reunion" evening at Les Acacias!

Madame Clare wanted to contribute to the evening's meal and offered to prepare a starter.

It was the most delicious salad ... I wrote to Madame Clare to obtain the recipe and here it is ...

This will be a great recipe for a summer dinner (with fresh peppers, onions, tomatoes, garlic from the local farmer's market) in our courtyard back home; actually anytime of the year it would be "Parfait"!

Merci beaucoup Madame Clare for sharing the recipe!

Scallop Salad ...

Sauté 2 large bell peppers, 2 onions, and 4 cloves of garlic (all very thinly sliced) in 1/4 c. olive oil for a couple of minutes.

Cover, lower heat, add salt, pepper and cayenne and continue cooking for about 30 minutes until everything is soft.

For "spicy tomato vinaigrette" whisk 1/3 cup tomato and red pepper coulis (see below) 1 1/2 T sherry vinegar, 4 T. fresh parsley, more cayenne, salt and pepper to taste and 2 T. olive oil.

COULIS: Bring to a boil and simmer for 45 minutes the following:

3T. olive oil, 1 onion, 2 small red peppers, 3 tomatoes (all coarsely chopped) and 5 cloves garlic, bouquet garni, salt, pepper and cayenne to taste and 1/3 cup of water.

Blend in a blender for 2 minutes. Add more water if it seems thick. Makes 2-3 cups.

Throw everything together, cover and refrigerate at least an hour or overnight.

I used 1 large scallop per person, sliced horizontally and seared on both sides for 30 seconds or so total.

I also put a handful salad greens on each plate before serving.

The leftover coulis was good to add to soup or spaghetti sauce.

Doesn't this look delicious?

And the "Spicy Tomato Vinagrette" would be wonderful on many other salads/ dishes!

I was inspired to write this post because I joined "the Great 5 Day Salad Challenge" group ... and for me it has been a big challenge since we are not at home, travelling throughout France and are visiting different villages which usually includes "déjeuner" / lunch out at a café/ restaurant.

Luckily we are winding down and have had a few days this week where we've prepared some "salad" lunches at the apartment with fresh local produce and ingredients!

Wednesday, June 3, 2015

The Beauty and the Beast of Provence ... Mont Ventoux

#Beautyandthe Beast#BeastofProvence#BaldMountian

#MontVentoux#GiantofProvence#TourdeFrance#CrillonleBrave

Monsieur Honey was bound and bent he was going to the top of Mont Ventoux.

Remember I told you about this "Beauty" a few posts ago.

It is stunning to look at from down here!

Why would I want to go up to the top, I can see it clearly from where I am down below!

Mont Ventoux is the largest mountain in the region (part of the Alps) standing at 1912 meters or 6273 feet at it's peak.

Mont Ventoux achieved it's fame through its' use in the Tour de France races.

On our return trip from our Market/lunch date in Bédoin on Monday, Msr. suggested we take the scenic "high" road to see the views from the top of this famous mountain.

I just kept saying "Go tell it on the Mountain" ... I'm not going to meet the "Beast of Provence".

Mont Ventoux has been given several nicknames over the years ... "Beast of Provence", "Giant of Provence" and "the Bald Mountain".

Fast forward to Tuesday ... first of all we didn't go up the Mountain on Monday.

The Monsieur half of our hosts/ landlords "Jean-Marie" took Monsieur Honey for a road trip which included some "mountain climbing" in his Peugeot.

Phew! I was saved from a white knuckle, hair raising, heart palpitating excursion!

They travelled about 100 kilometers in total.

The actual climb from the bottom to the top of the mountain is about 26 kilometers, they went up one side and came back down on the other side,

They travelled from Sarrians in the direction of Bédoin then onward.

There first stop was in the village of "Crillon Le Brave" (not far from Bédoin) where the Monsieurs checked out this Hotel that we understand is owned by a Canadian.

They wandered through to the terrace where with permission some beautiful photos were shot!

We've now put a "must do visit" to this village on our last few days' itinerary, so I'll tell you about this "beautiful Provençal village" in another post.

Doesn't that look like snow at the top?

The snow poles to measure the depth of the snow. It is not uncommon for there to be snow on the mountain in April. And it looks like snow even now because the top is bare limestone and above the tree line.