June 10, 2010
Two Treats for Bread Bakers
Bread baking is one of those activities that can quickly become obsessive, like knitting or playing red dead redemption. It's not really something you can remain casual about, not if you want to improve your skills, so you find yourself combing through forum discussions, bookmarking blogs and websites, buying books -- anything to satisfy your thirst for knowledge and inspiration.
I say it's fine to embrace such a harmless obsession -- unless y...
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April 13, 2010
Lamb and Orange Khoresh
A favorite from the archives, this post was originally published in April 2009.
I know little about Persian cuisine. I do know it is a multifaceted one, that its flavors are refined and its roots run deep, but I have never been to an Iranian restaurant nor an Iranian home -- though now that I think about it, one of the Middle Eastern groceries we went to in California may have been Iranian -- so this Persian stew (that's what khoresh means) wa...
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December 8, 2009
Carrot and Ginger Quickie Pickle
Pickling means preserving food in a seasoned brine or vinegar mixture, and in case you didn't get the memo, pickles are the new cupcakes.
I sorta kinda doubt it -- try bringing pickles to your nephew's birthday party -- but, as someone who grew up with store-bought jars of cornichons (gherkins) as the single pickled element of the family diet, I am most intrigued by the techniques involved, and the wide range of products they create.
I am a c...
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May 19, 2009
Sticky Chocolate Cake
Last time I was in London, my primary objective may have been to snuggle up with my nephew, but I still brought a list of food places I wanted to check out, for, you know, research purposes. One of them was Ottolenghi, a deli that offers a daily selection of colorful dishes -- with an emphasis on fresh produce -- and dazzling pastries.
I had received a review copy of their seductive cookbook a couple of months before, and had quickly stopped t...
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January 13, 2009
Perfect Hard-Boiled Eggs
This is a recipe I got from David Tanis' A Platter of Figs and Other Recipes.
I realize that naming this cookbook my favorite for 2008 and then showcasing its recipe for hard-boiled eggs sends a curious message, yet it illustrates exactly what I look for in a book: not just engaging stories, understated pictures, and seasonally sound menus -- all features that Tanis' book can brag about -- but also things to learn, understand, and remember lo...
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November 25, 2008
Cashew Cheese
Although I am as omnivorous as they come, I have a vivid interest in the diet of those who decide to -- or must -- walk an alternate path, be it vegetarian, vegan, raw, or allergen-free.
The reason why I'm so interested is that cooking and eating under constraints such as these encourages those who do to think out of the box, seek out new ingredients or look at old ones in a different light, and invent techniques, recipes, and dishes that come...
June 18, 2008
Banana Pecan Cake with Maple Glaze
Among the countless blessings this blog has brought to my life is this one: I have met and become friends with a few cookbook authors.
They are delicious people to be around, naturally, and if I manage to fox my way into their house they may actually cook for me, but the invaluable bonus is that, once I've come to know and trust them, once I've witnessed how exacting they are, and how much pressure they submit themselves to in order to produce...
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February 6, 2008
Salade Tiède de Potimarron et Haricots Blancs
[Warm Hokkaido Squash and White Bean Salad]
I write this from a café where I like to go and get some work done when I find it difficult to concentrate at home. Today, however, an unforeseen challenge has materialized on my path. Sitting a few tables from mine are two living clichés: a blond, middle-aged, French casting director and a young, craggy-bearded, khaki-vested film director from LA. They are in deep conversation about finding the perf...
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January 11, 2008
If There Could Only Be Five
If you keep an eye on my book list, you may have noticed I am currently reading Michael Ruhlman's recently published, orange book*. In The Elements of Cooking, he proposes to break down and discuss the building blocks of the cooking craft, like William Strunk Jr. and E.B. White did for writers in their classic little volume The Elements of Style, to which the title and format are a homage.
It is an engaging and educational read that retains a s...
"If There Could Only Be Five" continues »
January 8, 2008
Soupe Poireaux Pommes de Terre
[Leek and Potato Soup]
It has been far too long since last I wrote about soup. Have I stopped making soup? This is like asking if I've stopped breathing, and the answer -- as I type this, at least -- is no.
The reason for this soup drought is that I've mostly been making variations of soups already featured on this blog, or über-simple combinations of whatever vegetables cried for salvation in my refrigerator.
Today's recipe is also very si...
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November 9, 2007
Crisp Hazelnut and Pepper Cookies
If you're the observant type, you may have noticed the walk-on actor in the fig sorbet picture two weeks ago. And you know what happens to walk-ons when they're talented and good-lookin' and lucky: they graduate to leading roles. Today is the cookie's big break; today, the cookie gets to be the hero of the post.
The recipe comes from Laurence Salomon's cookbook, Fondre de plaisir*, which I purchased after reading about it on so many French foo...
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November 14, 2006
Green Bean and Almond Soup
[Soupe de Haricots Verts aux Amandes]
None of my friends need to be reminded how I feel about Rose Bakery, their salad plates, their assortment of British goods (including Neal's Yard cheeses), and their superb sweets that one simply must try and reproduce at home. "Where should we go for lunch in your neighborhood?" they ask. "I like Rose Bakery," I reply. "And what about breakfast/tea/brunch, what do you recommend?" they ask. "Well, I like R...
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November 10, 2006
Aged Gouda and Dried Pear Scones
[Scones au Gouda Vieux et Poires Séchées]
Before we begin, I would like to address the scone/biscuit question. To Americans, a biscuit is the hand-held version of a quick bread, leavened with baking powder. Usually round and savory, the American biscuit may be served in place of bread to accompany a main course, especially if said main course involves a gravy component. The closest equivalent the British and the French can think of is the scon...
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November 6, 2006
Chocolate & Zucchini: Daily Adventures in a Parisian Kitchen
[Click here to enlarge.]
As those of you who subscribe to the C&Z newsletter already know, my upcoming cookbook is now available for pre-order on Amazon (and on Amazon.fr, too).
It feels quite peculiar to see it there, as does each step that leads to the book's release* and makes it more real: I have seen the production schedule, I have gone over the first-pass pages laid out as the final book will be, I will soon receive blads and galleys, a...
"Chocolate & Zucchini: Daily Adventures in a Parisian Kitchen" continues »
September 1, 2006
Cantines
Cantine is French for school cafeteria*, and it is hard to find a grown-up that doesn't have a story or two to recount about his cantine days. These memories are often a mix of the bitter (the food was less than stellar, and the atmosphere was one of constant struggle for social survival) and the sweet (petit-suisse fights were fun, and if you knew what strings to pull, you could lay your hands on an extra serving of fries -- du rab de frites),...
May 8, 2006
Laurie Colwin's Home Cooking
I have a special bookshelf where I keep the books I plan to read. Some of them I've bought myself, and some of them I've borrowed, mostly from my mother or from my neighbor Patricia. At latest count -- let me get up from the couch and count them for you -- there are thirty-two books there. As you will infer, I am a bit of an unread-book hoarder, and I don't feel quite serene unless this stash is well fed.
Perhaps my most cherished moment in th...
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March 9, 2006
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 ri...
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January 23, 2006
Mes Recettes Pour Votre Ménage
[My Recipes For Your Home]
When my grandmother gave me her superb edition of L'Art Culinaire Moderne, she also entrusted me with two much-loved little books, which had belonged to her mother before her.
Mes Recettes Pour Votre Ménage and Mes Recettes Pour Votre Dessert ("My recipes for your home" and "My recipes for your dessert") are two books in a series of three that were written during World War I, and republished several times after tha...
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September 1, 2005
L'Art Culinaire Moderne
I have written about my grandmother on a few occasions in the past. She is my father's mother and she lives not too far from me, which allows me to visit and bask in the glow of her tenderness and her general wisdom on all things life.
In the past few years, my ever-growing passion for food and cooking have definitely brought us closer: as a devoted cook herself, I can see how happy she is that a grandchild of hers would share that interest a...
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February 15, 2005
Mary Frances! I've heard so much about you!
I had been told wonderful things about MFK Fisher (1908-1992, full name Mary Frances Kennedy Fisher), but had never had a chance to read the work of the brightest shining light in American food writing. I had been looking for her books in the English-language bookstores I frequent, but they never seemed to have them in stock and since I wasn't sure which one I wanted, I didn't wish to have them ordered for me.
Just last week though, I stopped ...
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July 13, 2004
Pastelarias, Here I Come!
Last year, Maxence and I went on a little week-end getaway to Lisbon. A blissful, dazzling few days of walks along the narrow little streets, funicular rides up and down the hills, stunning views of the city, and sunny drives along the beautiful coast.
But all of this wouldn't have been quite as magical without the stupendous Portuguese cuisine : seafood galore -- grilled marinated fried salted or otherwise smoked -- tasty little nibbles, sca...
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May 12, 2004
Le Ventre de Paris
Le Ventre de Paris, translated into The Belly of Paris, is a novel written by Emile Zola in 1873. It is the third of the twenty novels of his naturalist cycle of books, Les Rougon Macquart. The series is about two branches of a large family and their members -- the rich and powerful Rougon, and the poor and miserable Macquart -- whose lives intertwine from the middle of the 18th to the late 19th century.
Each novel focuses on certain nodes of...
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January 26, 2004
Kitchen Confidential
[Adventures in the Culinary Underbelly]
Anthony Bourdain attended the Culinary Institute of America 25 years ago, has been in the restaurant business ever since, and is currently the executive chef of the restaurant "Les Halles" in New York. His book "Kitchen Confidential" is both an autobiography and an essay on the world of restaurants, and is written in an unusual tone of honesty and bluntness. A highly entertaining, instructive and fascina...
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January 23, 2004
In Which She Finally Gets Her Hands On Pierre Hermé's Book
Last fall, I met the friend of a friend at a party and discovered to my great excitement that he worked for none other than pastry chef Pierre Hermé, at his rue Bonaparte pâtisserie. I had been coveting his new recipe book called "Mes Desserts Préférés" for a little while, and when I mentioned that to my new friend, he said he could try and have a copy signed for me. I nodded. Vigorously.
It took a number of weeks, missed calls and missed appo...
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January 8, 2004
The Cookbooks To End All Cookbooks
Introducing the most beautiful cookbooks of all times : Le Grand Livre de Cuisine d'Alain Ducasse and his little brother Le Grand Livre de Cuisine d'Alain Ducasse - Desserts et Pâtisseries, both generous Christmas gifts from my parents.
Alain Ducasse, for those of you who may not be familiar with the character, is one of the greatest (and probably richest) French chefs of this era. A creative genius, he owns and operates restaurants in New Yor...
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October 20, 2003
Les Desserts Préférés de Pierre Hermé
[Pierre Hermé's Favorite Desserts]
Pierre Hermé is a world famous pastry chef. His stores in Paris, New York and Tokyo are designed like jewellery stores and are constantly crowded, with lines often going around the corner. He is a very prolific and inventive chef, who actually imagines new pastry lines twice a year, a spring/summer collection, and a fall/winter collection. His creations are always aesthetically perfect, but his real focus is ...
"Les Desserts Préférés de Pierre Hermé" continues »