Ah, La Vie Belge

We arrived in Belgium the day before yesterday. I’m not sure how long it took us to reach the house from Brussels, probably 45 minutes or so, but we drove on tree lined highways and past wheat fields, beet fields, and quaint houses made of stone and brick  covered with lush ivy. Since our arrival, we have had 7 delicious meals, and we are about to eat our 8th.

As soon as we arrived, we set the table in the dining room for 7, as well as 2 settings outside for the boys. Denise heated up some green soup made from courgettes (squash), onions and herbes de provence, and put a plate with ham and a platter of 4 different types of cheese on the table, as well as a basket of 2 types of bread. The cheeses included several soft cheeses, two of which were mild and the other had more flavor, and a sliced pale orange cheese that had a rich flavor. She also put out a cucumber salad of thinly sliced cucumbers, and we sat down to our feast. We ate the soup first, which was delicious. It had a very nice buttery sweet flavor that was very smooth and mellow. The breads and cheeses were a delight, and the thick slab of yellow butter was incredible.

Afterwards Denise brought out a great tin of Belgian chocolates, telling us to eat up. Mmmm, Belgium.

{Des Chocolats}

Afterwards we took a tour of the garden. It is a marvelous little garden, which looks like it belongs in a fairy tale, what with the castle in the background. You can find eggplants, tomatoes, cherry tomatoes, celery, carrots, a big plot of potatoes, squash, beans and greens all growing in tidy unruliness together. She pointed out the round green streaked squash that we had eaten in our soup. We reveled in the sunlight, a streak of luck we hadn’t expected. It was even hot feeling, it was so humid.

Jan and I took a walk to explore the village and the countryside, falling in love with the stone and brick houses tucked away in a verdant jumble of foliage, and the sweet people who cried out “bonjour!” to us as we passed.

For dinner, we sat down to a delicious roti de porc, two types of beans and boiled potatoes. There was a cold salad of yellow beans with parsley and a touch of vinegar and oil, and a hot bean dish of green beans with parsley and garlic. The pork was absolutely delicious, cooked in its own juices and a bit of water (it was a boston butt and thus nicely run though with streaks of fat), as well as tiny slices of non-fried bacon, tomatoes and garlic. 

The meat was tender and delicious in a pool of it own juice, which was further appreciated when soaked up by the potato. Bon appétit indeed! We enjoyed a glass of rose with the meal.

More later!