Chocolate delights

Today I made my annual Christmas visit to our local chocolate factory; it has to be my favorite part of Christmas shopping. Guinguet have been making chocolates since 1950. This visit is very high up on our client’s wish list along with visiting vineyards.

Guinguet specialize in prunes dipped in chocolate, picked and dried from their own nearby orchard, they are simply delicious. It’s really difficult to choose from the huge selection on offer, and to make it more difficult, you can sample as many chocolates as you can eat! After a very enjoyable 20 minutes I left with armfuls of lovely treats all beautifully wrapped. The French really know how to make the customers life easier.

And now for the history bit (could be useful for the pub quiz)!.The ancient Aztec and Maya civilizations were the first to recognize the potency of chocolate and used it to celebrate the harvest of the cacao beans. They brewed it into a hot, spicy drink and believed it gave them wisdom, enlightenment and sexual prowess. Only men in the ruling and religious classes were allowed to drink the chocolate.

Cocoa beans were used as currency by the Mayan and Aztec cultures. Perhaps this is where the saying "Money grows on trees" came from.

In the 16th century, the Spanish crushed the Aztec empire and took home the Aztec methods of extracting undiluted unsweetened liquor from fermented cacao beans. They sweetened the drink with honey and sugar and for years it remained a rich man’s drink. In the 17th century, chocolate became popular across Europe. It was still sold only as a drink and as it attracted high import duties, was enjoyed by the rich. In due course, chocolate drinking houses opened and these became popular meeting places. Around 1700, the English started adding milk, so making the drink less bitter.

A few useful factoids you may not know: -

* For chocolate to be lethal, a person has to consume 22lb of chocolate.

* There are no allergies caused by chocolates.

* Eating a chocolate before a meal will take the appetite away hence, it helps to keep a balance diet.

* Chocolate releases the hormone, serotonin, which makes a person feel relaxed, calm, and happy.

* Unlike the common belief, chocolate is not high in caffeine as ten chocolate bars would equate to only one cup of coffee.

* The reason why chocolate is good for humans is that cacao beans contain theobromine that helps to enlarge blood vessels, which then treats high blood pressure.

* Normally, the shelf life of a bar of chocolate is a year, but it can be put in a freezer to be kept indefinitely.

* Dark chocolate has more antioxidants than green tea, and just as many as blueberries.

* Allowing chocolate to melt in your mouth produces the same or even stronger reactions as passionately kissing.

As if you needed any convincing that a little chocolate is actually good for you!. I hope all you chocolate lovers out there enjoy your share of chocolate treats this Christmas, remember 9 out of 10 people like chocolate, the 10th person always lies!

Winter has finally arrived here at Chateau Perroterie, strong winds and rain, its time for big roaring fires, and hearty salads…….. yes you read right, salad, it’s fast approaching the period of excess, rich foods, and copious amounts of alcohol. So John & I have decided we would move into cruise control and eat large salads till the festival season arrives.

Tonight the salad I created was a bowl of baby gems & Mache leaves, salmon cooked in butter and olive oil, then flaked, sliced cooked new potatoes, slithers of Serrano ham, sliced green olives, julienne carrots, the dressing was a blend of mayonnaise, crème fraiche or natural yoghurt, sugar, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, capers, thinned down with olive oil. I whizzed it all in a blender, but you can use a clean jam jar, taste and add seasonings if necessary. The dressing will keep in the fridge for 2-3 days. Serve with crusty bread, and a glass of chilled white Sauvignon blanc, www.domainedelaulan.com . Yes just a simple salad!!!!!!

We were invited to our English neighbour’s vineyard for supper last night. Jacky & Iain Chater started up in business nearly 9 years ago, with no previous experience in the wine business, let alone the cultivation & production of wine. Jacky & Iain come from an IT background and are passionate about French wines. They now produce award winning wines, and recently they received their organic certification. They deliver all over the world and are rapidly becoming a serious “Tour de force”   

Our clients love visiting their vineyard; you are treated to a really interesting tour and of course, some great tastings at the end. View their website -

http://www.domainechater.com/vineyard.htm

Jacky made an amazing mushroom soup, followed by a rich Coq au Vin, a beautiful cheeseboard and finally a sweet mince Filo parcel with a yummy nutty ice cream. Sadly I forgot my camera so no lovely pictures, not that Jacky would’ve let me take any photos anyway!!.

New starts

Chateau Perroterie

John and I have finally had time to focus on our business Blog-spot. We want our Blog to be interesting, helpful, and fun. The Blog will focus on our home/business, what's great about France and especially our area of France. We are both passionate about food, drink, the whole "terroir" thing.

We have just returned from a visit to Carcassonne in the Languedoc region. The beautiful medieval city is of course full of history and a real honey pot  for tourists, this didn't bother us, or the crazy tourist prices! The cuisine is legendary especially the Cassoulet, this is where we took issue. The restaurant menus were unimaginative very similar, expensive, and woefully poor in the taste department.  So marks out of 10 - historical atmosphere 10/10, overpriced gifts 7/10, cuisine 2/10, local wines 8/10, friendliness 6/10 would we recommend a visit, yes but only a 1 night stay.

Carcassonne

On our return to Duras in Lot & Garonne, we were reassured that our region is far more beautiful, friendlier, cheaper, great value cuisine, our Cotes de Duras wines are delicious. So we unashamedly boast that we live in a great part of France, and it is our mission to promote our area's many qualities as honestly as we can, and yes we are biased!

Aux Fontaines

Must tell you about our lovely meal last night. Some clients very kindly took us to a restaurant which John & I have wanted to try out for ages. The Restaurant is called Aux Fontaines & is situated in La Reole.  http://www.restaurant-aux-fontaines.com/plan-restaurant.html It is a beautiful old town house the entire front has been converted into 2 dinning rooms. which takes about 50 covers. I have posted the restaurants link so you can see the whole menu. I had a stunning aubergine caviar which can be a bit boring but the addition of spice & refreshing lime with fresh crab & prawns mixed through, topped with rocket leaves, and there you have a very nice starter. The main was a supreme of Guinea fowl, slightly gamey taste, with braised red cabbage rosti & saute buttered vegetables. The dessert was a chocolate & fig delight, very very rich but at this point your at the point of no return. A very big thank you to Laraine & Robert.

There's something about the weekend, its a time to catch your breath after a busy week, time to chill out. I thought it would be fun to make a few wishes as I slowly woke up on a grey wet morning. 1. A lie in bed with a cup of tea, 2. A lovely cooked breakfast, 3. Sitting by a roaring fire reading a good book, 4. A glass of wine watching a movie. 5. A Chicken & chorizo risotto, followed by a piece of sticky chocolate brownie. Now I can report that all of my wishes were granted, what a great day.

CHICKEN & CHORIZO RISOTTO

Melt 100g butter in a non stick frying pan, add a finely chopped shallot & 1 clove of garlic, sauté till golden, add 150g Arborio risotto rice stir till coated in the butter, let the rice slightly burst (2 mins) to allow the fluids to be absorbed & the starch from the rice is released. Add a good glug of either white wine or in my case some vermouth, wait till its absorbed. Have a pan with 750ml of chicken stock ready, add a ladle of stock to the pan, stir & let it be absorbed before adding the next ladle full, it may not need all the stock or it may need a little extra stock, its always different. Mean while fry 2 chicken breasts cubed, & some sliced chorizo. When the risotto is almost ready add the chicken & chorizo, stir in some chopped parsley. 
Enjoy your weekend make lots of wishes - Angel Blogger

Really busy at the moment getting our property winterized, so a speedy easy supper needed. A quick look in my fridge where I found 2 chicken breasts, some jambon sec,  jar of cranberry sauce, & a piece of blue cheese. Here's what I have done.

Between 2 pieces of greaseproof paper place a chicken breast then let all your stress of the day out by hammering the meat (tenderising more chefy term) till its flat & twice its size. Spread a good spoonful of cranberry sauce onto the chicken followed by some crumbled cheese. Gently roll the breast forming a parcel shape, then lay out a couple of stripes of dried ham, place the chicken parcel on the edge & again roll till the breast is encircled in the ham, place in a roasting tin, then drizzle over some olive oil & salt & pepper. Cook in a moderate hot oven 400f, for 20-25 minutes, leaving enough time to have a soak in the bath with a chilled glass of Rose wine. Very satisfying end to a very satisfying day. Hope you too enjoy this sometime.

Love Angel Blogger.