Cycling for Gourmets

One of the joys of  Brittany is the marvelous cycling opportunities available. There are miles of safe cycle routes which will take you through beautiful countryside and unspoilt medieval villages. Combine your cooking holiday with a cycling holiday and you have the best of both worlds. Here is a route which takes you through one of my favorite routes from St Malo down the Rance Valley to Dinan and the lovely city of Rennes. A fairly flat route through some splendid medieval citadels including lively St Malo and colourful, charming Dinan. A cycle path follows the scenic River Rance and Ille et Vilaine canal to Rennes, the grandiose capital of Brittany. After the fascinating old town of Vitré and the medieval chateau of Fougeres, another cycle path takes the route of a former railway towards France's second most iconic tourist spot, the ancient and extraordinary island of Mont St Michel. A third cycle route, often on dykes, crosses beautiful and blissfully flat marshland. Next is a stunning coast road with a string of windmills and pristine sandy beaches. Once you have had your fill of oysters in Cancale, it's back to St Malo for crepes or you could spend a few days at French Dining School enjoying some of the best food of your life!

A. St Malo - walled citadel - most visitors head for the characterful, imposing and bustling old town, which is full of restaurants, shops and hotels. Accommodation may be easier to find and cheaper outside the walls. The route takes the beautiful Rance valley to Dinan, passing through the delightful and un-spoilt riverside village of St Suliac (with camping). Turn left at Taden to join the cycle path that runs along the edge of the Rance. Tourist information, hotels and campsites. 21 miles to Dinan
B. Dinan - late medieval walled citadel - From your riverside path, the small and beautiful port of Dinan comes into view. With its ancient bridge, the Pont Gothique, it makes an ideal lunch or drink stop. On top of the hill, right next to the river is the citadel. Consider leaving your bike in the port and take a short walk up a steep, colourful, cobbled street into a quaint and enchanting town of half timbered houses. If your muscles allow, climb the ancient clock tower for panoramic views. Dinan is every bit as spectacular as St Malo but quieter. Tourist information, hotels, hostel and campsite. 20 miles to Tinténiac.

From Dinan, pick up the Voie Verte cycle route number 3, just south of the Pont Gothique. The first few hundred yards through woodland are quite narrow and a bit bumpy but then it becomes a well surfaced towpath of the River Rance. The river later turns into the Ille et Vilaine canal.
C. Tinténiac and Hedé - pleasant small towns - Less than a couple of miles from the canal, they offer food and lodging. There are some impressive and sometimes quirky lock keepers cottages along this stretch of the canal and if you are lucky you may spot a red squirrel. Fellow cyclists are almost as rare as the squirrels in all but high season. Tourist information and municipal campsite at Tinténiac. Alternative campsite between the two towns. Hotel in Hedé. 29 miles to Rennes
The canal path takes you right to the heart of Rennes but if you don't like big cities or if you just want to cut off a corner, leave the canal 7 miles north at Beton (hotel here).
D. Rennes - pleasant city, built to impress - Rennes has wide boulevards, spacious squares and imposing buildings. Its old quarter, north of the river is lively and full of character. Cyclists are quite well looked after with many marked cycle lanes making for an easier city than many to negotiate. Tourist information, hotels and campsite. 26 miles to Vitré.
From Rennes to Acigné the road is fairly busy but then becomes quieter. The route passes through Champeaux with an impressive well in a paved square.
E. Vitré - well preserved medieval market town - It's surprising Vitré isn't better known by tourists. It's a welcoming place with a turreted fairytale castle and countless atmospheric streets. Even the municipal campsite has some impressive 19th century stone fortifications scattered through the pitches. Tourist information and hotels. Campsite 1.5 miles south of town. 18 miles to Fougères.
F. Fougères - old town boasting the largest medieval castle in Europe - The town is built on two levels separated by imposing granite cliffs. The public gardens overlooking the castle and the medieval part of town are spectacular. Tourist information, hotels and campsite. 19 miles to Antrain
There is a hill to get out of Fougeres but you soon pick up a cycle track which takes the path of a disused railway all the way to Antrain.
G. Antrain - End of the cycle track. The route then follows a generally flat river route through the beautiful Sougéal marshes. Campsite. 9 miles to Pontorson
H. Pontorson - quiet, small town, useful base for Mont St Michel - Tourist information, hotels, hostel and campsite. 5.5 miles to Mont St Michel
A cycle route along the River Couesnon starts from the town or behind the campsite and youth hostel. At the time of writing it was under construction with a gravelly surface, but still useable. A wide road runs across the causeway to the Mont St Michel, suitable for cyclists
I. Mont St Michel - hugely popular and magnificent fortified island topped with an imposing 8th century abbey. An entire town with a jumble of winding streets and the spectacular abbey, site of medieval pilgrimages, is crammed onto an outcrop of rocks. The whole rises to an impressive eighty metres and commands an imposing position in the bay between Brittany and Normandy. Tourist information and hotels. 27 miles to Cancale.
In contrast to the buzz of Mont St Michel, the reclaimed marshland land to the west, criss-crossed by dikes, is a haven of rural tranquillity and makes for perfect, unhurried cycling. After taking the bridge at Beauvoir, you can either follow the cycle signs to Cancale, which routes via a bumpy cycle path, or find your own way through the lanes. Look out for the many windmills along the coast road after Cherrueix.
J. Cancale - seaside resort and important oyster growing area. Even if you don't like oysters, the town is charming in its own right. To the north is the windswept and incredibly scenic Point du Grouin. The road runs along the coast and offers stunning views to the north. Tourist information, hotels, hostel and campsites. 15 miles to St Malo.
St Malo - departure port

 

Grouse with roasted pumpkin, Jerusalem artichoke and beetroot

It is now grouse season and with roasted pumpkin, Jerusalem artichokes and beetroot you can have a wonderful main course which is both warming and tasty.

Ingredients

For the grouse:

2 grouse, prepared and wrapped in bacon

1 tbsp vegetable oil

50g/2oz celeriac, chopped into 1cm/½in dice

50g/2oz carrots, chopped into 1cm/½in dice

50g/2oz celery, chopped into 1cm/½in dice

10 baby onions

2 sprigs fresh thyme

1 tbsp brandy

250ml/9fl oz chicken stock

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

 

 For the roasted vegetables:

2 beetroot, peeled and quartered

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

 Jerusalem artichokes

½ lemon, juice only

1kg/2lb 2oz pumpkin, peeled, seeds removed 

olive oil, for frying

50g/2oz hazelnuts, roughly chopped

2 shallots, finely chopped

1 tbsp chopped chives

50ml/2fl oz hazelnut oil

1 tsp sherry vinegar, or to taste

handful watercress sprigs

 

Method:

1. Take the grouse out of the fridge so that they can come to room temperature before you start cooking.
   
2. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/Gas 6.
   
3. Heat the vegetable oil in a large heavy-bottomed roasting tin. Season the grouse well, inside and out, then sear them in the tin until golden brown all over.
   
4. Add the diced vegetables, baby onions and thyme sprigs to the tin.
   
5. Place the grouse on one breast and roast in the hot oven for 3-4 minutes.
   
6. Flip the birds onto the other breast and roast for another three minutes.
   
7. Pour brandy into the cavity of both birds and place them on their back to finish roasting – another five minutes.
   
8. Remove the tin from the oven and leave the grouse to rest for 10 minutes, out of the tin, breast upwards so the juices are evenly distributed. Remove the vegetables with a slotted spoon for later use, and set aside all the pan juices.
   
9. Put the roasting tin back on the heat on top of the stove and begin to reduce the cooking juices.
   
10. Add the chicken stock, bring to the boil and let the sauce reduce and thicken.
    
11. Take off the heat and pass through a fine sieve - keep warm until ready to serve.
    
12. For the roasted vegetables, heat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4.
    
13. Place the beetroot quarters into a saucepan and pour in enough water to cover. Add salt and bring to the boil.
    
14. Simmer for 30 minutes or until the beetroot is nearly cooked. Drain and set aside.
    
15. Meanwhile, peel the Jerusalem artichokes, cut them in half and immerse in a bowl of cold water with the lemon juice added to stop them discolouring.
    
16. Cut the pumpkin into thick moon-shaped slices.
    
17. Heat a large non-stick ovenproof frying pan (or a cast-iron roasting pan) over a medium-high heat and add a drizzle of olive oil.
    
18. Place the pumpkin and Jerusalem artichokes into the pan, season with salt and cook for 3-4 minutes, until they start to colour.
    
19. Transfer the whole pan to the oven and roast for 15 minutes.
    
20. Cut the par-cooked beetroot into wedges, add to the pan and cook in the oven for a further five minutes.
    
21. Meanwhile, make the dressing. Combine the chopped hazelnuts, shallots, chives and hazelnut oil in a bowl. Add a splash of sherry vinegar and season with salt and pepper to taste.
    
22. To serve, once the grouse have rested, carve the legs and breast meat onto a plate and spoon over the pan juices.
    
23. Serve the roasted vegetables alongside with the dressing and watercress on top.