Cookies, Muffins & Co.

Those of you who read a little French have no doubt happened upon Pascale's food blog, called C'est moi qui l'ai fait! (which means "I made it myself"). I first met Pascale some two years ago at a food show, and we have been very good friends ever since, meeting on a regular basis for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or silicon molds home sales -- as you can see, our friendship is very much food-centered, but then again my entire life is, so all is right in my world.

And Pascale has just published a cookbook! It is called Cookies, Muffins & Co and can be found in French bookstores or online. It is a tiny book in size, but an eminent one in the wealth of recipes it holds -- over a hundred American and British sweet treats of all kinds, with cultural notes and serving suggestions for each.

Since Pascale has lived in the US for a little while and is happily married to an English guy (with a sense of humor to match), I can't think of anyone better suited to write it. I like that she has included classics that are the French know and love -- brownies, cheesecakes and cookies -- but has also made sure she introduced her readers to lesser-known, but no less delicious desserts -- Eccles cakes, cobblers and Victoria sponge cakes, to name but a few.

I have witnessed with my own eyes how much energy and heart she has poured into the project, testing and writing up all those recipes in an insanely short period of time, and to get an idea of the work involved, you can check out the great making-of blog she has set up, with pictures of many of the recipes.

I was lucky enough to receive a copy signed by the author (it will be worth thousands in a few years I tell you), and I can only urge you to get one for yourself -- heck, at 2.90€ a pop, you should get a dozen!

My only regret is that it is such a small book, and I would love to see more paper and ink and bookshelf space devoted to my friend's talents, but I have a feeling she has a long cookbook-writing career ahead of her, so my frustration will soon be eased I'm sure.