The Chateau Diaries #302 Stay home and renovate the damn chito

[FecilitéJ]

Still brooding over Marie's lamb shoulder.
It's one of the great meats, treated with lots of love and respect, a good boning knife, butcher's twine and FINESSE, has about a million mouth-watering, slow-cooked permutations, not one referred to in that thing Marie served.
It's soul food* and she didn't cook it that way. Cooks from Beirut to Shanghai to Chateauroux rub their hands in anticipation when they think of a nice big chunk of lamb shoulder.
Nor does she have a single clue, living in the heart of France. I mean, the supermarche butcher could have given her some advice. Not to mention the shitoo's 5,000 cookbooks.
I'm personally affronted.
______________
*Even Careme, as fancy as his pants were, gets the soul food thing. Nutmeg, people. He put a sufficiency of nutmeg AND lardons in his lamb shoulder.

I'm right with you. I find it hard to get shoulder but slow cooked lamb shanks are fab. I usually do mine with red wine, garlic, fresh rosemary and cranberries. I used to love a stuffed rolled breast of lamb, roasted until the outside was crispy. Haven't been able to find that in ages either. Not a lot of meat in them but they were cheap and delicious.

 

[Arfarf]

Nicky needs to sharpen his photoshop skills...

View attachment 2901829

He made himself look like Justin Bieber.

 

[Lady Avonlea]

Putting two and two together and ending up somewhere crazy (it's the very early hours of Sunday morning and I can't sleep so forgive me):

1. I seem to remember that PhiPhi made a comment about a possible addition to their family.........
2. Fanny is almost certainly past childbearing age........
3. They knew they were going to SA and had arranged a visit to an orphanage......
4. Some countries will only favour adoption applications from married or engaged couples......
5. Ergo, a rushed engagement just prior to the SA trip ??????
6. Maybe turned down flat at the orphanage.
7. A definite cooling off by them both since their return to France.

A crazy suggestion?

Just think of what a money spinner that little scheme would have been. I would not put anything past them.

The addition to the family was Ratso!

 

[Jules100]

The addition to the family was Ratso!

SJ & Philip discussed the addition after they already had Lancelot.

 

[billybudd]

Apparently I missed that episode! My EYES!!

He looks like a medieval peasant about to crush grapes with his toes.

When I was little, in South America, a Yugoslavian immigrant family had all the young and little girls stomp the grapes with our virginal feet.
It was heaven I have to tell you. Felt so good. Grapes came up to my mid shins.
And I'm sure it was a great alpha hydroxy (?) treatment for our then-perfect feet.
---

I'm picturing my arrival at the dump as a guest and this is my welcome:

• An orange plastic fence.
• A large mysterious dent in the lawn.
• Storage units, always a welcoming site.
• Scaffolding on the chapel.
• Workers vehicles.
• Weed choked gardens.
• Rooms that are off limits due to structural problems.
• Inconsistent and often mysterious food.
• An unleashed hyper little dog (I don't trust most dogs)
• A room with peeling wallpaper and mismatched everything.
• No way to get a decent cup of coffee.
• Boxed wine served in decanters containing lead.

I want my money back!

Maybe the storage containers are for the guests.
---

Totally could have grated it frozen.. not that it would have helped that orange colored dish..

Were there like chili beans in it? I couldn't look at it long enough to tell.

 

[Sparrowsfart]

Pekey is back home and now I am trying to catch up!
Daut and I had a lovely time and the weather was great in Sydney.

Was there ANY renovations and is Fanny travelling???

I'm home from Sydney too. I kept watch for mothers and daughters, but didn't see any I thought might be you. Next time we are both in Sydney I should just call out Pekey every now and then like shouting cooeee.

 

[billybudd]

I'm right with you. I find it hard to get shoulder but slow cooked lamb shanks are fab. I usually do mine with red wine, garlic, fresh rosemary and cranberries. I used to love a stuffed rolled breast of lamb, roasted until the outside was crispy. Haven't been able to find that in ages either. Not a lot of meat in them but they were cheap and delicious.

Lamb breast, haven't seen one for sale in decades. They were delicious. Labor intensive and delicious. And then you had all the bones for soupie.

 

[T Rex]

Can one make homestyle farm cheese or yoghurt out of lactose free milk?
You remind me of my friend who learned to cook in his late 30s and became quite the gentleman gourmet. I asked him why he converted in mid life and he said, my mother was a terrible cook, my ex wife was a terrible cook, and I figured the only way to get something good to eat was to make it myself.
I can see how true that would be especially for a lactose-intolerant child, yikes.
Finally, why is Trixie learning to cook? Is he too competing with Marie? I think he wins the prize for ill conceived food served at 10 pm.

I tried once with an Instant Pot, and it did not turn out well! I wasn't always lactose intolerant- it began in my late 20s. A fellow engineer/good friend had the same thing going on, and deduced that it there was a good probability it came from all of the immunizations we had to get (we traveled A LOT for our jobs, and had to stay current- countries had specific requirements, so we received jabs for Yellow Fever, Anthrax, Typhoid, Influenza, Japanese Encephalitis, Hepatitis A & B, Tetanus, etc.) It has been constant trial and error discovering what I can or cannot eat- regular yogurt or sour cream? Not at all. Greek yogurt in small amounts- fine. Fage actually makes a lactose free greek yogurt, which is cool. Some cheeses are okay, and others are not. Same with ice cream/gelato- Breyers is a no-go (they are not very good anyway), but Mayfield and Publix brand are fine (in small amounts.) It makes eating out an adventure, as even though you think you are safe by ordering something that seems so, it is not always the case...

When I was in my early 20s, I lived in northern Italy (near Lago di Garda) and a lovely Nonna neighbour took me under her wing to teach me how to cook (I literally could not even boil water.) She could not speak English, and at the time, I could only speak English, Spanish and broken French- but somehow, we were able to communicate (she could better understand Spanish than English, so this was helpful.) Not only is she the reason I now speak fluent Italian (my Italian friends who I hung out and club-hopped with also get credit), but gave me a solid foundation for cooking. Use quality ingredients, make dishes with what is in season, cook it correctly and make everything with your heart. "If you put time and love into a dish, you'll feel it in every bite you eat! Even a simple dish can be exceptional!"

My Nonna neighbour would be horrified (RIP) if she saw Trixie's "lasagna"!

 

[Sparrowsfart]

Stephanie is going to bring in personally well over $1 million this year ( from December, 2023 thru 2024) but she is still far too cheap to take the dog to the vet, get his eyes looked after, trim its nails, install a small fenced in area for the dog or a small, invisible, fenced in area for the dog as they let him out the back door without anyone with him, pay for doggy daycare, get an appropriate dog seat for the car which will enable to look out the windows, but will also strap him in appropriately to where he cannot jump and run all over the interior of the car, etc.

I have a cousin who is an emergency room physician in Florida. He once told me about a case that came in where a man had been driving his car and his dog was unrestrained in the car. When the car was rear ended, the dog flew through the air, like a projectile, and hit the man in the head so hard that it forced the man’s head into a side window ( even with the air bags deployed ), cracking his skull. He also broke 2 vertebrae and ruptured 3 discs in his neck. The man had to undergo emergency brain surgery and had to have a portion of his skull temporary removed because his brain was so swollen from the blow. He later underwent additional surgery and mechanical fixation of the vertebrae in his neck and removal of a portion of the ruptured discs. The dog received massive internal injuries and died.

it is important to properly restrain a dog when they are riding in a vehicle. When Stephanie was laughing about Ratso crawling behind her back as she was riding in the car, if Philip had to suddenly brake or stop, she should be thrown back in her seat, and probably would crush Ratso, seriously injuring or killing him. 6 pound Ratso would easily become a projectile in any type of a car accident if he were not properly restrained.

Any if unrestrained animals survive a crash they can be very troublesome to firefighters, ambulance staff etc as they are protecting their owners.

 

[Margo Polo]

When I was little, in South America, a Yugoslavian immigrant family had all the young and little girls stomp the grapes with our virginal feet.
It was heaven I have to tell you. Felt so good. Grapes came up to my mid shins.
And I'm sure it was a great alpha hydroxy (?) treatment for our then-perfect feet.
---

Maybe the storage containers are for the guests.
---

Were there like chili beans in it? I couldn't look at it long enough to tell.

Did this ever happen?

 

[Pekey]

I'm home from Sydney too. I kept watch for mothers and daughters, but didn't see any I thought might be you. Next time we are both in Sydney I should just call out Pekey every now and then like shouting cooeee.

Did you see the busker guy with the guitar near Queen Vic building?
He played with a BAG over his head!!!
I have a photo and when hubby has the time I want him to put it on Tattle !
Bag Heads are IN!!!

Would have been fun for a meet up ..... I have shown my daughter CD and her mouth dropped - especially when I told her about Snorts , Chapel etc etc --- $$$$$$ .

Honestly...... its waaay better than the Bold & the Beautiful on TV .

 

[TorontoGWM]

 

[Sunnee]

Quick derail....have we seen any updates from @Marquis de Potpourri. Or maybe feeling best to keep low-key.

 

[Hedda Hopper]

SJ & Philip discussed the addition after they already had Lancelot.

Perhaps a Ratso 2?

 

[Pencil Pine Principessa]

When I was little, in South America, a Yugoslavian immigrant family had all the young and little girls stomp the grapes with our virginal feet.
It was heaven I have to tell you. Felt so good. Grapes came up to my mid shins.
And I'm sure it was a great alpha hydroxy (?) treatment for our then-perfect feet.
---

Maybe the storage containers are for the guests.
---

Were there like chili beans in it? I couldn't look at it long enough to tell.

It was not a lasagna. It was an abomination. Avert your eyes.

 

[OhIDontKnow...]

It was not a lasagna. It was an abomination. Avert your eyes.

Have they never actually seen a lasagna?

 

[MsPitstop]

So Stef/Phiphi/CarolineNoGooder that's a no, you can't host a vegan in the shitow.
And Silvia get a grip woman! A month!!!


@silviachiarito1035
8 hours ago (edited)
It'd be possibile for a vegan (me) to stay at Chateau Laland (for something like a month)? - obviously not for free - Thanx

1 reply

@carolinegooder7091
5 hours ago (edited)
The gites have small kitchen areas, so you could cook for yourself. Marquis's suite or small Tack room (Michael Potts' one room is your best bet.

For a month would be the big question.

 

[Ebb & Flow]

View attachment 2896295

Firstly,this is about the process not any Tattle Folks. Wondering if message could be delivered without the continued use of a child (comment comes from the heart and my work with young minds and mental health). Obviously, Tattle Life is a Forum for all, with open thoughts - I totally get that!

 

[OhIDontKnow...]

Firstly,this is about the process not any Tattle Folks. Wondering if message could be delivered without the continued use of a child (comment comes from the heart and my work with young minds and mental health). Obviously, Tattle Life is a Forum for all, with open thoughts - I totally get that!

Yeah I agree. The kid didn’t ask to be associated with any of this.

 

[Sparrowsfart]

Did you see the busker guy with the guitar near Queen Vic building?
He played with a BAG over his head!!!
I have a photo and when hubby has the time I want him to put it on Tattle !
Bag Heads are IN!!!

Would have been fun for a meet up ..... I have shown my daughter CD and her mouth dropped - especially when I told her about Snorts , Chapel etc etc --- $$$$$$ .

Honestly...... its waaay better than the Bold & the Beautiful on TV .

No missed that busker. I would have taken a photo too! Glad you had a lovely trip.