Ian was a free-lance chef and wine consultant in London, and dinners at La Souvigne reflect that, without having any pretensions to being Haute Cuisine in the strict sense of the term. However, on top of the day to day activities of running a B&B, cooking and serving a 5 course meal for up to 8 people at a time is an exhausting business. What that means is that with very great regret, we cannot provide dinner every night, especially if we are still going to be able to do so with enthusiasm and excellence. So in principle, we limit ourselves to 3 (4 at most) dinners a week, and try not to do them more than two days running. We're delighted to be able to get to know our guests better by welcoming you with a meal the evening they arrive, and then again on any day that other guests (if they wish to eat with us) arrive during your stay.
Normally, we speak French at the dinner table, unless we only have English speaking guests present, although we may make some allowances. Food here is extremely eclectic, and you may easily find that at one meal, we have dishes from five countries in two or three continents! We don't often cook food from the Correze as we feel that is somehow “cheating”, however there are plenty of splendid local restaurants where it can be found.
In accordance with Gites de France and the Ministry of Tourism rules regarding “Table d'Hôtes”, we only ever serve one menu, and we eat with our guests at one table. This has some implications for those with special dietary needs. We make a point of asking our guests if there are things which they can't eat, but there are, unfortunately, limits. With great regret, we do not serve vegan food, as that would oblige all those at the table to do so. Equally, this being very much a meat eating area, while we CAN serve a fish based main course for non meat eaters, we will only agree to do so, if the first people booking the meal are the ones to ask for it. This allows us to inform others of the style of the meal they will be joining us for.
These are a few sample menus, showing the sort of meal we produce. Just about everything that reasonably can be home made is home made and often the vegetables and salading are home grown. As a little extra touch, we are delighted to provide the recipes of any of the dishes we produce. Over the last year, we have been working to put them on line. Click here to see them.
Elizabeth David's Everlasting Syllabub
Yield: 6 servings
Put the first three ingredients (pared zest, juice, cinnamon and wine) into a bowl and infuse overnight. Next day strain the liquid into a bowl and stir in sugar till dissolved. Still stirring, slowly add the cream. Grate in a little nutmeg. Beat with a wire whisk until it holds its shape. Don't go on too long, or beat too hard as it will turn to butter.
Spoon the syllabub into small glasses and leave in a cool place (not the fridge) until needed. Will easily keep two days. Decorate, if wished with a little spring of rosemary or a twist of lemon peel. Serve with almond or sponge biscuits.
Recipe Elizabeth David
English Apple Pie
Yield: 6 servings
Pare and core apples and slice thickly. As you peel and slice them, put into cold water to which you have added the lemon juice, to keep them pale. Combine flour, sugars, spices & peels. Cover bottom of pie dish with sliced apples, sprinkle with a few of the chopped dried fruit and some of the spice mixture, and repeat until all is used and the pie dish is full almost to overflowing. Sprinkle with orange juice.
Dot the top with butter then fit crust over apples, sealing well round the sides. Make a hole in the centre, and decorate with a few leaves made from pastry around the central hole. Glaze, if wished.
Bake in a preheated moderately hot oven (400°F 200°C) for 35 to 40 minutes or until tender and crust nicely browned. Allow to cool to warm before serving with cream or cheddar cheese.
Recipe after Robert Carrier "Great dishes of the World"
Little Sticky Toffee Puddings With Pecan Sauce
Yield: 8 servings
You will need 8 six oz pudding basins, lightly oiled with groundnut oil, a swiss roll tin & a baking sheet. Preheat oven to Mk 4, 350°F 170°C Put chopped dates in a bowl, pour boiling water over them. Then add the vanilla, coffee essence and bicarbonade of soda & leave on one side.
In a large mixing bowl, cream butter & sugar together, beating with an electric hand whisk until the mixture is pale, light & fluffy. Gradually add the beaten eggs, a little at a time, beating well after each addition. Carefully & lightly fold in the sifted flour using a metal spoon. Then you can fold in the date mixture - including the liquid. You will probably think at this stage that you have done something wrong because the mixture will look very sloppy but don't worry, that is perfectly correct and the slackness of the mixture is what makes the puddings so light.
Divide the mixture equally between the 8 containers, place them on a baking tray and bake in the centre of the oven for 25 mins. When they are cooked, leave to cool 5 mins, then using a cloth to protect your hands, slide a small palette knife round each pudding and turn it out. If they've risen too much, cut their tops off so that they sit evenly on the plate. The puddings may be cooked in advance and frozen at this stage.
Place the puddings on a shallow swiss roll type tin. Make the sauce by combining all the ingredients in a saucepan and heating very gently until the sugar has melted and all the crystals have dissolved. To serve - Preheat the grill to its highest setting, and pour the sauce evenly over the puddings. Place the tin under the grill so that the tops of the puddings are about 5" from the heat. Knock off any nuts on the top to prevent them burning. Let them heat through for about 8 mins. The tops will become brown and slightly crunchy and the sauce will be hot & bubbling. Serve with the chilled pouring cream. If using from frozen, defrost, pour the hot sauce over and heat as above.
Recipe from "Delia Smith's Christmas" by Delia Smith
Pears Baked In Honey
Yield: 12 servings
Preheat oven to 325°F (160°C). Peel halve and core the pears, keeping them in water which you have acidulated with half the lemon juice. Dissolve the honey in the water, add the other half of the lemon juice and bring to the boil. Transfer to an oven proof dish or pan large enough to keep the pear halves in one layer.
Add the drained pear halves and bring back to the boil. Immediately transfer the dish to the oven and poach until the pears are really tender. Remove with slotted spoon, boil down cooking liquor to a syrup and pour over the pears. Leave to cool then chill. Serve with the thickest cream you can find.
This recipe is traditional in my family and goes back at least 300 years.
Recipe IMH
Plume's Marmalade Tart
Yield: 8 servings
Preheat oven to 220°C 450°F. Roll pastry thinly and line a 9" (22cm) tart tin. Par bake blind in hot oven. Meanwhile, cream sugar and butter together. Beat egg lightly, and add with the flour to the butter/sugar mixture. Add marmalade and mix well. Pour into pastry shell and bake at 200°C (400°F, Regulo 6 ) for 20-30 mins.
Recipe Mrs Mallows (Plume) Monceaux-sur-Dordogne
