Gathering walnuts in the Loire Valley

On a recent walk we came across the not uncommon site of a local man gathering walnuts he was in a cheerful mood and seemed to be enjoying his task in the sunshine. He was a bit of a sage and shared with us the fact that as you get older your body shrinks yet the ground gets further away! I'm sure that those of us of a certain age can relate to this.

We are blessed with sources for walnuts with the village (Barrou) having communal trees plus friends who allow us to share in their 'harvest'. One of our most popular starters for a meal is now a dish of beetroot, this year from our own garden, goat's cheese, from someone else's goat and locally picked walnuts.This is all mixed in a dressing that includes locally sourced walnut oil.

Tastes so much better than it looks!

Pauline's bit:

To make the walnut oil dressing

Crush 1 garlic clove in the bowl and season

Add 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard

Add 1 tablespoon of Xeres vinegar 

Mix in 4 tablespoons of walnut oil