THE POTATO BABE

Dordogne: The Search For Walnut Oil

There are worse places in the world to wake up than in the shadows of a monstrous medieval castle. I don’t mean we can see it from our windows. I mean it’s so close that it’s the only thing we can see. I may throw like a girl, but I am confident I could throw a baseball into one of the stained glass windows. The architecture and scenery here are much different from Provence – it almost feels like we’re in a different country, except everyone is STILL speaking only French.

This morning we took in the market in Monpazier, the nearest town to our (one night and now it’s mine?) chateau. We were sent out with a short list – bread, smoked duck breast and fresh cheese. Laura was understandably irked when we came home with bread, cigarettes and two canned Coca-Cola Lights. Evan and I had satisfied our respective vices, so we were must more productive kitchen assistants.

Later in the day my playmate and I drove to Domme to finish our grocery list – Laura wanted walnut oil and vinegar, which together make the only salad dressing you’ll find here. Her hand-written directions explained the store’s location, its window decorations and the exact look of the bottle we’re seeking (which we find easily, thank you very much).

After we bought the goods, we were walking through the town when Evan heard a familiar voice. There in the next shop over were Frank and Debbie, enjoying their day off between Vagabond trips and making the most of their day in Domme. I’ll admit they were happy to see us because they weren’t completely confident with their directions to the chateau.

I’ve become surprisingly comfortable driving on the hills with Blue Betty, Simon my navigator and Evan my co-pilot. (At home, I’d be happy if I never had to drive again. But here it’s an unexpected source of power.)

For dinner we made a vegetable terrine and a nice duck breast salad. We bought the duck at a farm just up the street; when Steve was inside buying it, Evan and I bumped into about a hundred darling little ducks, which of course we videotaped. (I did NOT eat the duck on my salad, for the record). I made a peach cobbler for dessert, which was pretty good considering my questionable baking skills.