A supper to make you feel like you're on a French holiday (without actually going anywhere)

The warm autumn sunshine of France on a plate. Quick duck cassoulet laced with courgettes, tomatoes and kale from the autumn veg patch and walnut croutons.

What I did on my holiday

I’m back from a phone-free fortnight (more of which next time) in France armed with an Intermarché carrier bag of tins and a head full of ideas.

I hope you enjoyed the Dig In series of quick, adaptable, mostly veggie meals I sent out during the break. If you missed, those catch up here:

DIG IN #1 - Flatbread pizza

DIG IN #2 - Roast veg & mash

DIG IN #3 - Frittata

In the veg patch

I have returned to a veg patch FULL of autumnal loveliness thanks to the kale, cavolo nero, turnips and pumpkins; but the tomatoes, courgettes and lettuce of summer are still going strong.

As I unpack my tins of duck confit, chestnut puree, fig jam, my kilo bags of local walnuts, and jars of beans, I ponder the potential offered by this wonderful time of year when we enjoy both summer and autumn harvests at the same time.

Those brackish waters between late summer and autumn, between the last hurrah of tomatoes and courgettes and the arrival of brassicas and chilly nights when I close the greenhouse door; these are my favourite days because they are so bountiful.

Turn of the season cassoulet

Anyway, dish, a sort of cassoulet, this is the first of two recipes inspired by my French supermarket haul and the current gluts. Next week, I’ll share the dessert to go with this cassoulet (think apples and walnuts), as well as a full debrief of my phone-free existence.

The cassoulet, by the way, is deeply unauthentic. If I weren’t feeling all romantic about my recent trip, I’d probably just call it a bean stew the duck. But where’s the poetry in that.

Turn of the season duck cassoulet with walnut croutons

This quick but decadent stew is inspired by a French cassoulet but takes some liberties, not least using baby courgettes in place or sausages (which is enough to make every true 19^th Century French peasant turn in their rustic grave). Still, it’s a chance to bring home a little of my holiday in Perigord (ie: duck, walnuts and beans cooked in pork stock) but also enjoy the turn of the season harvests like courgettes, tomatoes and kale.

Serves 4

• 1 tin containing 4 confit duck legs, plus 4-5 tbsp duck fat from the tin

• 100g lardons, pancetta or diced streaky bacon

• 400g courgettes, a mixture of baby courgettes (whole or halved lengthways) and large ones, finely sliced

• 4 garlic cloves, crushed