The price per dinner is €18,- including aperitif, wine and coffee.What will we have for dinner tonight?
The price per dinner is €18,- including aperitif, wine and coffee.
Depending of the main course we serve one or more of the following starters:A salad of lentils; curly chicory and cubes of fried bacon, both dishes cooked the Lyon way, or herring and potatoes in fine olive oil, pumpkin soup served in the pumpkin itself, a mousse of eggplant with a taste of mint from our own garden, a mousse of fresh peas with parsley and chives. A mousse of celeriac with a seasoning of olive oil and garlic, cucumber and yoghurt with a touch of garlic, a mousse of chicken livers with a dry vermouth dressing, cold chicken meat together with chicken liver and freshly cut herbs, salmon and sorrel in puffy pastry (only served for special occasions), home made farmhouse brawn, or when it is very hot, a cold and refreshing cucumber soup with a touch of mint.
After the starter we serve one of the following main courses: Burgundy style pork cheeks with sugar glazed carrots, duck baked in a salt crust (only possible when the number of guests is not too high), quails prepared with prunes or blue Auvergne cheese, duck breast in a rich butter sauce and basil vinegar, veals head meat with 'sauce remoulade' or a 'sauce gribiche' (a sauce made of herbs, egg, capers and oil), rabbit served with Roquefort cheese and polenta, ox or veal tongue with sauce gribiche, frog's legs à la Provençale. And not to forget duck and swede or tripe in breadcrumbs and sauce remoulade.
On request of our guests we are most happy to make a real (Suisse) fondue of 1/3 of 'vacherin Fribourg', when available; vacherin Fribourg is a tasty cheese of Suisse origin produced in the surroundings of Fribourg.
We take much pleasure in cooking the famous 'blanquette de veau', a true French dish of veal in a delicious and creamy white sauce. Further we serve trout freshly caught near the mill of Malfranier, a 'sauce Hollandaise' with a horseradish or garden sorrel seasoning, candied duck and pepperoni. Quite recently we added candied pork cheeks to our menu which is highly recommended!
When many guests are gathered around our table we might roast an entire sucking pig over the fire place and serve a choice of grilled side dishes. A sucking pig has to be ordered one week in advance from a biological farm in the neighbourhood. The price of this special dinner is slightly higher, i.e. € 20,- per person.
Side dishes that we gladly serve are:Sugar glazed carrots, Pastis flambé fennel, braised leek, beetroot soufflé, carrots, courgettes, celeriac or coal in butter sauce, you name it….. The side dishes served are carefully selected to be in harmony with the main course. And as usual all depends on the availability of the ingredients needed.
To complete dinner Sheila brings in one of her delicious home made desserts, like: Lemon foam torte, a chestnut and chocolate cake, a cake with truffles of dark chocolate, pastry stuffed with chocolate and candied pears, a fresh fruit pie, pancakes folded as a small purse and stuffed with chocolate and candied orange (only possible when the number of guests is not too high) or just a simple piece of cake when dinner was very rich.
At every course we serve regional wines, a Merlot or Syrah, which are excellent wines. Of course water is available from Nozières' own natural sources.
Remark: Some ingredients are not always available, it depends on what the market offers. At breakfast we discuss the options for dinner.
To please the children that can have quite strong preferences as to what food they will eat, we will be most willing to serve a simple pasta dish with a tasty sauce or when requested, with creamy butter only. Children too should feel at ease so it's easy going at the Ancient Convent!
(Bravely translated from French by René van Loen )
