Janies Place Bed-and-Breakfast-Charente
Beautiful Old Stone House
Your day starts with a French buffet breakfast - baguette, warm croissants and yoghurt, cereal, fresh fruit and home-made conserves. Orange juice, fresh brewed coffee, tea or chcocolate. Sometimes the first cuckoo is heard in March, and we start to look forward to those magical endless days of dawn to dusk sunshine, soaring temperatures and clear blue skies. You might choose an evening such as these to have dinner outside.
Appetisers
Our four-course dinner includes aperitif, wine and coffee.
Chilled soup, fresh tomato and basil spiced sauce with chick peas, cumin and mint. Alternatively, cream of broccoli, carrot or mussel soup with roasted red peppers is great chilled. Or French onion soup with home- made beef stock, caramelised onion, wine and garlic croutons smothered in melted gruyere cheese....
Salad with herbs, tomatoes, baby cornichons and an egg topped with dollops of thick, home-made garlicky mayonnaise. Home-made pates with triangles of toast and salad ... freshly-made savoury tarts such as individual goats-cheese pastries served with salad, or spinach and parmesan souffles. All food photos were taken by us from food we made.
Your Main Dish
We slow cook Coq au Vin and Boeuf Bourgignon that have been marinated in red wine with traditionally-made stock from bones and herbs from the garden. Chicken pieces are roasted with an assortment of vegetables such as tomatoes, garlic, courgettes and fennel....
Alternatives
Chicken braised with tomatoes and red wine ... or raspberry vinegar ... crepes made in our kitchen filled with ham, cheese, eggs or mushrooms with salad ... fresh jumbo shrimp with an egg poached in tarragon vinegar ... Other meat dishes include papillotes of pork simmered in white wine, Dijon mustard and creme fraiche ... or slow-braised duck leg, all with fresh vegetables, whipped potatoes and fresh herbs, potato quenelles or potato gratin.
Your cheeseboard
A selection ranging from Chevre (goats') to blue cheese, St Agur, Brie, Camembert, St Colombes, Gouda or Emmentel, served with biscuits and perhaps a tablet of our home-made quince jelly or purple figs in season.
Dessert
Tuck into a SEASONAL CRUMBLE, apple peach or apricot ... PEARS poached with cinnamon, cassis, honey and red wine, SUMMER BERRIES with cognac creme ... CHOCOLATE MOUSSE ... CREME BRULEE with a hint of apple all topped with thick creme fraiche or pouring cream where appropriate !