Asparagus ramekins

Hike above Toudon in the Prealps of Côte d'Azur

Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild Gardens

Côte de veau, veal chop, with polenta

Côte de veau, veal chop with polenta

Preparation time:10 min
Cooking time:30 min
Total time:40 min

It is here in France that I have discovered côtes de veau, veal chops. In our supermarket in Nice they are approximately the same size as pork chops, weighing about 150- 180 g each. Veal chops have consistently been tasty and tender.

In the following recipe, which I have somewhat modified from a recipe in a French magazine, the veal chops are first quickly fried in a pan and then baked in the oven. Veal needs to be well done to achieve its tenderness. If you cannot buy veal chops in your area, you might try this recipe with pork chops.

French veal fond helps to make a quick sauce. I usually choose Marmite Fond de Veau and add some crème fraiche 15% fat, minced shallots and white wine for a tasty sauce. Polenta can now be cooked in a few minutes with milk and a pinch of salt, just follow the advice on the package. Serve with frozen microwaved green beans.

2 servings

2 nice veal chops, côtes de veau, about 150-180 g each
A small package Marmite veal fond, fond de veau (or similar)
250 ml water
100 ml white wine
1 shallot, minced
2 tbsp. crème fraiche, 15% fat
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. rapeseed oil, huile de colza
Parsley or chives to decorate

Preheat the oven to 180°C

In a heavy frying pan, warm the butter and rapeseed oil over medium-high heat. Fry the veal chops about 2,5 minutes on both sides until golden brown. Transfer to an oven-tray, and continue baking in the oven 15 to 20 minutes. In a small sauce pan warm the water until almost boiling, then reduce the heat. Add one package of Marmite Fond de Veau and whip until completely dissolved. Continue simmering and reducing, mixing now and then.

In a separate small sauce pan, bring the white wine and some black pepper to the boil. Add the minced shallot and reduce the heat to simmering. Continue simmering until the wine is reduced to about half. When the veal chops are done, add about half to ¾ of the reduced veal fond into the wine sauce and mix well. Whip in the crème fraiche and keep warm.

Divide the veal chops, polenta and green beans on the plates. Pour the veal fond-wine sauce over the veal chops and grind over some black pepper. Decorate with chives or parsley.

Airplane wreck above Tourrettes-sur-Loup

We have previously made several good hikes from Tourrettes-sur-Loup such as Circuit de Pié Martin, the ascent to Col de Vence, and to Puy de Naouri.

This time we ascended from the village in search of an airplane wreck.

In July 1980, a Danish registered single-engine plane OY-CAY crashed below the summit of Puy de Tourrettes (1268 m). According to an aviation safety site, the pilot survived the crash. There were no passengers. The plane in question was a three-year old Rockwell Commander 114. What exactly happened is not described. I was certified to fly the Rockwell Commander 112 in the late 70s, hence the additional interest. The plane had very nice handling qualities. The main difference between the two was the engine size: -112 had a 200hp powerplant whereas the -114 had 60hp more.

Based on pictures of the wreck, and some French hiking web sites, I could pinpoint the location. The wreck is also visible in Google Earth.

We started from the centre of Tourrettes-sur-Loup (400 m) along a paved road called Route de Caïre. It ascended steeply passing the last houses. Eventually, a guesthouse Bastide de la Source (820 m) with impressive surroundings was reached. The paved road ended here. The trail now continued ascending steeply, zigzagging in the mountain slope. After about 1h 50 after the start, we came to a crossroads at a plateau (about 1030 m). From here, one marked and signposted trail continued straight(north) to St Barnabé, the second turned right(east) to Puy de Naouri. The third trail that forked left(west, pictured) was unmarked and not shown on the map, but there were cairns. Clearly it continued towards the summit of Puy de Tourrettes.

From the said crossroads, I knew that the heading to the Rockwell wreck was about 250°, and the distance 910 m. The direct route seemed to be a bit rocky. We therefore chose to follow the trail heading west about 400 m, then forked left and started to look for the wreck that was lying at 1085 m elevation.

We first found parts of the tailplane and the fin. The fuselage was a bit higher, about 150 m northwest, lying with the nose downhill. It was surprisingly well preserved after almost 36 years. There were no signs of fire. The engine was long gone and not much was left of the interior.

Needless to say, it was a bit sad to see a great plane ending up here. We descended back to Tourrettes-sur-Loup along the same trail.

Total ascent: 700 m

Duration: 4 h

Short loop above Tourrettes-sur-Loup