Europe Day 10 : A Mountain Hike & Truffade in Cantal, Auvergne

After a quiet and restful sleep in the cool mountain air, we awoke to fresh croissants and tea for breakfast. Since we had gone to bed before my friend’s parents returned from their night of dancing, this was also our first opportunity to meet our lovely hosts.  Her mother was already busy cooking our delicious lunch as it was going to take much of the morning to prepare, and the kitchen smelled incredible. 

Once breakfast was complete, we changed into hiking clothes and headed off on our short drive through the town of Mandailles to climb a mountain called Col de Pertus. It was a steep hike through trees eventually leading into a meadow with some amazing views of the region.  I hate to admit it but I was not able to make it to the top of the mountain and had to stop just short of the last steep climb.  My son, of course practically ran up the trail while I found a place to wait and shoot some photos of the beautiful scenery. The walk down the mountain was much easier and allowed for some interesting political and other discussions including how hungry we were feeling after all that work. On the drive back, we stopped for a quick walk in the small village of Mandailles and then picked up some sausages, cheese and fruit that had been ordered for our lunch.

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We returned to the farm, washed up and helped set the outdoor table while our hostess finished cooking the sausages, some carrots and the special treat of the day – Truffade!! Truffade is the regional dish of the mountains of Auvergne and is made with potatoes and cheese; a lot of a very specific cheese which melts and becomes ooey & gooey and tastes absolutely delicious. This is NOT for the diet conscious but we were on vacation and I had left all my dietary restrictions at home for this trip. Also included in the feast was some sweet melon and fresh baked bread which is standard for all meals in France.  A cheese course (a must at all French meals) and dessert followed and we had eaten enough to not only satisfy our hunger but were in need of a long walk to digest it all.

A short while later we packed our bags, said goodbye to our gracious hosts and were on the road headed back to Limoges with a stop for coffee and exploring in the medieval town of Salers.

Back to our home base in Limoges, we enjoyed Aperol spritzes before a dinner of pasta, foie gras, bread and some beautiful wine.  It had been a perfect day!!!