5 comments about Paris Sweets: Great Desserts From the City's Best Pastry Shops.

1. Dorie Greenspan writes the best recipes. Over the past year, I've tried more than a dozen recipes from this book, and all are authentic and delicious. The recipes for madeleines, Anise Cookies, and the Pierre Herme's Korova cookies are especially noteworthy.
   
   Also, recipes in the cookies and simple cakes sections don't take very much time and are suitable for a beginning baker.



2. I ordered this book because it was the only cookbook I could find that included a recipe for Opera Cake. Opera Cake is my husband's favorite dessert, and so I thought I would make it for his birthday. Well, unfortunately, I learned that the recipe for Opera Cake actually has six (yes, SIX) subrecipes, and would probably take me about 3 days to make ... and with a new baby, I wouldn't have three days to spend on a dessert. So the Opera Cake, the original rationale for getting the book, never got made. But still, I found it somehow heartening that such a complicated recipe could be broken down into readable and comprehensible component parts ... something that a mere mortal could actually reproduce in her own American home kitchen - if she had three days and didn't happen to have a newborn to cater to, that is.
   
   One small disappointment was that Greenspan doesn't give a recipe for almond macaroons (macarons), which were my favorite treat when I spent a little time in France. She just gives a lengthy description of how wonderful they are and says they are hard for the home cook to reproduce. I know she is right in saying so, as I did try to make them once at home using the recipe in Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook, and they turned nothing like the ones I'd had in France and I considered that recipe a failure. Still, on Amazon.fr there are about 20 different single-subject cookbooks in French on making macarons at home, so I still hold out hope that it's actually possible and I'll find a good recipe someday (or get around to ordering one of the French-language macaron treatises).
   
   That said, this cookbook is a delight in every other way. The book is partly a travelogue describing the atmosphere and offerings at Paris's most famous patisseries, and her writing is so evocative, and so charmingly illustrated with line drawings, that you while reading you tend to feel as if you were standing in front of a gleaming case of sweetly scented pastries with a rotund pastry chef behind the counter sending up clouds of artisanal flour as you contemplate your order in line behind an elegant femme in couture high-heels leading a poodle on a leash.
   
   Along with the travelogue descriptions you get the occasional informative discourse on ingredients such as chocolate and flour and eggs and how the ones the French pastry chefs use are different from ours.
   
   And, of course, there are recipes, wonderful recipes. I made the choclate sables, and they were easy, and totally addictive as Greenspan warns. And I made the hot chocolate and it was so rich I had palpitations afterwards, but the taste was worth the risk of a heart attack. (And it was also easy peasy to make. I called my mom and gave her the recipe over the phone.)
   
   Ten stars for this wonderful book.



3. Dorie Greenspan's delightful, mouthwatering tour of Paris's patisseries in Paris Sweets: Great Desserts from the City's Best Pastry Shops is a gastronomic tour though the tempting varieties of French desserts, including cookies, simple cakes, tarts, pastries, more elaborate cakes, and base recipes.
   
   Illustrated with charming pen-and-ink drawings (no photos of finished desserts, unfortunately), Dorie's fascinating backstories on the numerous Parisian bakeries and their signature recipes make for an enjoyable read. Dorie's familiarity with these cafes really lends her an air of authority when discussing the finer points of pastries and ingredients, as does the fact that she's a resident of Paris and not merely a visitor.
   
   The selection of cookies includes delicate hints of citrus and spices such as anise, ground nuts, and classic cookies such as financiers and madeleines. For fans of chocolate, there are several chocolate cakes (pound cake, chocolate almond cake, Grandmother's creamy chocolate cake) and more unusual selections such as the Alsatian Kouglof (the original inspiration for the Bundt pan) and flan.
   
   When I think of Parisian desserts, my first vision is an elegant tart, and Paris Sweets doesn't disappoint. Included are several chocolate tarts, one garnished with apricot jam and ripe bananas, a baked apple tart, and an unusual tea-flavored Tarte Tatin from Mariage Freres. Also included are the custardy fruit tarts, originally from Limousin, known as clafoutis, a whole-lemon tart, a fig-and-citrus tart, and unusual variations such as coffee, strawberry and marshmallow, and darjeeling tarts.
   
   Perhaps the most emblematic of Paris's desserts are its pastries: creme brulee, chocolate mousse, chocolate bread pudding, ali-babas, coffee eclairs, and sumptuous hot chocolate thousands of miles above and beyond lame American Swiss Miss powder imitations. Simple yet elegant, these are described in exacting detail so that even a beginning home cook should feel confident enough to attempt them.
   
   The last section, grand gateaux, covers elaborate, time-consuming cake creations such as Bacchus (golden raisins soaked in rum, three moist, chewy almond and cocoa cake layers, slabs of mousse-like ganache, and a dark chocolate glaze), Opera cake (three layers of almond cake soaked in coffee syrup, a layer of espresso buttercream, a layer of bittersweet chocolate ganache, and topped with chocolate glaze), Chocolate Temptation (a layer cake made from cocoa cake saturated with chocolate syrup and spread with raspberry jam and covered with a bittersweet ganache), Blanc-manger, Kings' Cake (yes, this is probably the origin of the N'Awlins Mardis Gras King Cake since it was served at Epiphany and similarly contains a hidden trinket), and Mille-feuille (layered puff pastry filled with pastry cream).
   
   Base recipes include pastry creams (almond, vanilla), pate sucree (sweet tart dough), and puff pastry. Also included is a brief source guide (snail mail and URLs) and the addresses of all cafes and patisseries mentioned in Paris Sweets. Thoughtfully, recipes are given in Imperial and Metric measurements (supplies, ingredients, and oven temperatures). Most include ingredients that are easy enough to find if you happen to live near a well-stocked grocery store, or better yet, a Williams-Sonoma. Like with any dessert, you will want to use the best chocolate you can afford (Cluizel is always a solid choice), since baking won't improve the quality of the raw ingredients.
   
   The end result of Paris Sweets are deceptively simple desserts that will transport you to the narrow streets and aged facades of Paris's historic patisseries. Even if you never make a single recipe, Dorie's writing is a rewarding journey by itself, especially with a steaming bowl of cafe au lait as you flip through this gem of a cookbook.



4. Paris Sweets: Great Desserts From the City's Best Pastry Shops We have been searching and searching for a recipe for Parisian Flan, and in this book we finally found the taste and texture we had been searching for! What a great compilation of Paris delicacies, easy to make and so delicious. Thanks, Doris!!!



5. Being a big fan of Dorie Greenspan, I bought the book with great expectations. Dorie managed to tell great stories of these Parisian pastry creations at the same time tell her readers how to recreate those experiences.
   
   As usual, the recipes are very detailed with step by step instructions, with pointers following each recipe to make it more unique. I tried many of them, and I'm definitely happy with the end results.
   
   I only wish that there are pictures in the book, helping readers to envision how the end results would be. It'll also help giving pointers on judging whether the results are favorable. I mean, if I had not tasted a Madeleine in my entire life, how can I tell the difference between the real ones with a hump, and those flat ones from Starbucks?

5 comments about Le Cordon Bleu's Complete Cooking Techniques: the indispensable reference demonstrates over 700 illustrated techniques with 2,000 photos and 200 recipes.

1. As an avid cookbook collector I have used this cookbook as a basic for many years. I purchased another one for a friend. He owns a restaurant and uses this tool everyday. This is my go to book to find anything! Great for beginners to advanced cooks.



2. Le Cordon Bleu's Complete Cooking Techniques: the indispensable reference demonstrates over 700 illustrated techniques with 2,000 photos and 200 recipes
   
   An excellent book, with easy to follow receipes and which allows you to see what the finish product should look like. Would recommend it to anyone.



3. This book is a "technique" book, plain and simple.
   
   You will NOT find numerous recipes for dishes (there are a few), but you will find a blend of visual and textual descriptions about how to technically prepare foods.
   
   This is a superb book if you are looking for clear, wonderful color photos depicting food selection, identification, and cutting techniques, ideas for preparation (forming mushrooms into flowers, etc), and other non-recipe food information that is ACTUALLY USEFUL to an amateur chef.
   
   You will find a few general recipes, but overall this is a great way to visually observe how to perform a myriad of professional techniques.



4. This is a great aid in really understanding how to do almost anything basic in the kitchen - from picking produce at precisely the right time to making cheese in your own home. This is not a cookbook - although some basic recipes are covered for the purpose of instruction.
   
   I got this book and read it cover to cover in one sitting - I discovered I had been doing some things incorrectly or inefficiently, I drooled over the pictures of perfect produce, and really took in every bit of information it provided. The pictures are great and so helpful and the book serves as a great reference for how to do stuff you were never taught how to do.
   
   For example, my mother who makes tasty comfort food, has never purchased fresh chicken or beef from the butcher - I grew up on frozen proteins purchased in bulk, so I never knew what to look for or what to ask for if I wanted to buy from the butcher's counter - I was too intimidated and therefore continued my mother's frozen bulk traditions. With this book as my guide, I am now more comfortable stepping out of my comfort zone and trying something new.
   
   If the other Le Cordon Bleu's books are anything like this, I'm investing in the whole set. :)



5. This book is just amazing. Great help for those who want to master or learn the basic cooking techniques.

No comments about Decadent Desserts: Recipes from Chateau Vaux-le-Vicomte.

2 comments about Bistros and Brasseries: Recipes and Reflections on Classic Cafe Cooking (The Culinary Institute of America Dining Series) (The Culinary Institute of America Dining Series).

1. The Culinary Institute of America (or "The CIA") is a prestigious, not-for-profit, culinary college founded in 1946 in New Haven, CT. This book is a part of their Dining Series and was written by two CIA professors, John W. Fischer and Lou Jones, both of whom possess the passion and knowledge necessary to take on a subject as broad and as endearing as this, the quintessential French institutions of bistros and brasseries.
   
   As the book explains in the beginning of the first chapter, the term "bistro" is generally meant to be applied to restaurants that are "unpretentious, uncomplicated, casual, comfortable and relatively affordable" (it should be mentioned that much of the world, especially Europe, spends a great deal more of their income on food than do Americans, so the word "relatively" is important here). The word Brasserie comes from a Middle French word for brewery and usually refers to "a casual restaurant that serves more beer than wine". If the definitions seems rather plebeian consider the fact that casual food in France includes dishes such as Ragout de Champignons, Coq au Vin and Steak Tartare.
   
   Fischer and Jones compiled recipes from bistros and brasseries both in France (several stories include accounts of their dining experiences during their "Tour de France Gastronomique" in 2004, a 2000 kilometer, seven day culinary sojourn) and the US, including the Blue Ribbon Brasserie in New York.
   
   Scattered throughout this small but beautifully designed book are informational sections that enlighten the reader and add to their overall understanding of this culinary genre. French wines are discussed and suggested for the corresponding dishes; there is an introduction to the world of French cheeses; the phenomenon known as "The French Paradox" (why the French can eat the way that they do and not die from a massive, national heart attack) is explained; cooking techniques are shared; and ingredients are examined (such as the lovely ode to the Brussels sprout). The authors live up to what I would expect from a pair of experienced culinary academics.
   
   The chapter titles are written in both French and English. Here is the English list:
   
   1. An introduction to the Pleasures of Casual French Dining
   * Here the authors discuss French Wines and Cheeses.
   
   2. Appetizers and Soups
   * Recipes are included for classic French dishes such as Escargot, Frog Legs and Onion Soup.
   
   3. Pancakes and Egg Based Dishes
   * Recipes include those for Spinach and Cheese Crepes, Raclette and Ham and Gruyere Omelet.
   
   4. Side Dishes
   * In this chapter is a great recipe for Oignons Farcies (Stuffed Onions) as well as those for Tartiflette, Pomme Frites and five others.
   
   5. Main Dishes
   * This is by far the largest chapter in the book, with well over two dozen recipes, such as: Butter Roasted Capon; Sliced Duck Breasts with Cherries; Duck Confit; Rabbit Stew; garlic Sausage on Green Lentils; Braised Lamb Shanks with White Bean Puree; Steak au Poivre; etc.
   
   6. Desserts
   * The simple but delicious deserts served at family-style French restaurants include Caramelized Apple Tart, Peach and Goat Cheese Tart, Poached Pears with Roquefort and more.
   
   7. Fonds de Cuisine
   * In this chapter the authors explain the cooking techniques necessary in order to tackle this style of cooking, such as: testing dishes for doneness; making clarified butter; the making of various stocks and sauces; etc.
   
   A highlight of this book for me was the photography. Veteran food photographer Ben Fink captures the warmth and earthiness of these classic versions of French comfort food with a style that is both contemporary and timeless . His shot of the Soupe a l'Oignon Gratinee sent me hurrying to the grocery store for the ingredients.
   
   This book is not an exhaustive treatment of the subject of French rustic cuisine (such as Paula Wolfert's classic "The Cooking of Southwest France") but it serves as both an introduction to this style of food and a reminder to some of us to the pleasures of simple, joyful cooking. This will be a book that I turn to often. Very well done!



2. I own several books written by the CIA and their recipes are fool proof. Although no written recipe is 100 % accurate, CIA's recipes are fully tested and most of the ones I've tried from this book seem pretty accurate. I just wish it had more recipes and more pictures but overall I'm pretty satified. The shipping condition on this book was great and I wish I could say the same from other books I have purchased from Amazon.

1 comments about Essence.

1. If you are chef this is the book for you.recipes like a sunchoke and the roasted almond soup,chessnut soup,eel tortelloni with watercress cream and bitter leaves,and pumpkin gnocchi with crisp pork belly seared squid and peanut milk.only down side not every recipe has a picture,but the photos yhat are in this book are beautiful.A must have and my favorite book

5 comments about Le Bernardin Cookbook: Four-Star Simplicity.

1. `Le Bernardin Cookbook' by highly regarded seafood chef Eric Ripert and restaurateur Maguy Le Coze (cofounder of the restaurant with her brother Gilbert) is the first case where I wished I could give a half a star. In many ways, it is a classic restaurant cookbook which is better than average in many ways, but I usually need a little more than `better than average' to give five stars. In comparison to Rob Feenie's `Lumiere' cookbook I reviewed yesterday, `Le Bernardin' exceeds expectations in the following ways:
   
   It is almost entirely a cookbook for all sorts of fish, based primarily on classic French recipes. This means that if you had a shelf of 100 famous restaurant cookbooks and wanted a recipe for fish, you could immediately go to either this book or Bob Kinkead's recent restaurant book, depending on whether you wanted something from Brittany or Baltimore. Oddly, this book also shares with the Kinkead book the fact that at least one recipe author (Bob Kinkead and Gilbert Le Coze) for each book was entirely self-taught.
   
   The story behind this book is about as endearing and as interesting as they come. `Le Bernardin' was originally opened in Paris by brother and sister Le Coze in 1972, after the siblings spend their early life together helping their parents run a struggling little restaurant on the coast of Brittany. After an initial splash and failure based on no experience, they ultimately succeeded in Paris. They followed this with opening the Manhattan restaurant in 1986, just as culinary consciousness in New York made it worth their while to open a restaurant which specialized in fish. All of this would be very ordinary if it were not for the incredible affection brother and sister had for one another, ended with the death of Gilbert at the age of forty-eight in 1994, just a year or two after hiring classically trained Eric Rippert as executive chef at the Manhattan restaurant.
   
   The recipes, many the creation of unschooled Gilbert, tend to be much more original than what you may find in the standard fish cookbooks by Mark Bittman, James Beard, and Alan Davidson. None of the classic bistro recipes for mussels (which you will find in Tony Bourdain's `Les Halles' book) are here. While some tend to the involved, fish recipes tend to be involved primarily in the preparation of stocks, nages, butter sauces and court bouillons. If you get the techniques for doing these things well, many of the recipes devolve into very simple preparations, befitting the generally fast cooking times for fish.
   
   Each recipe has a separate headnote from each author, and the counterpoint between them is almost worth the price of the book in itself. It is not uncommon for Madame Le Coze to really hate a recipe that Monsieur Rippert has just praised up and down the avenue. She usually comes around in the end, but the honesty is so unexpected that you start looking forward to contretemps in the next recipe dialogue.
   
   The recipes are organized in a very satisfactory way for a restaurant book on fish. The first chapter is an especially good collection of recipes for the basics. These are for the stocks, nages, butter sauces and court bouillons cited above. This is one of the few cookbooks I can thing of which includes a shrimp, lobster, and clam stock recipe. And, near and dear to my heart is the fact that the chicken stock recipe cooks for only three hours! The following eight chapters on fish dishes is just a little mixed, in that two chapters represent courses, `Salads' and `Appetizers' while six chapters represent the techniques `Raw Fish', `Poached and Steamed Fish', `Sautéed Fish', `Roasted Fish', `Grilled Fish', and `Shellfish'. The penultimate chapter on `Big Parties' gives seven over the top recipes for entertaining, most giving eight servings rather than the usual four to six servings. The last chapter on desserts seems relatively long, giving 31 recipes, including three for basics such as pastry cream, hazelnut-almond cream, ganache, and sweet pastry dough. With all the pastry books available, you will not be buying this book for the desserts, but it does add to the book's value. As usual, some of the dessert recipes are quite involved.
   
   There are no chapters or separate recipes for vegetables, as all the vegetable side dishes are included in the recipe for the seafood. This means many of the fish recipes may not be as complicated as they seem from their length if you removed the vegetable garnish, but that would take away the cachet of serving a dish as done at the great and famous Le Bernardin!
   
   Ultimately, this book deserves more than four stars because it is a restaurant cookbook that is more valuable than a source of instructive recipes to read. It has lots of great fish recipes that can be made by an amateur at home, as long as you have access to high quality ingredients. My only disappointment in reading the book is the feeling that there is simply no way I would be able to get the kind of fresh fish used by Le Bernardin unless I opened a restaurant in an Atlantic seaport.
   
   The mantra for this book that should be intoned as you look for a recipe is to respect the differences between the fishes. Things that work for skate will not work for tuna and vice versa. Respect the fish and you will be rewarded.



2. A lovely book from one of our favorite New York restaurants. The recipes are flavorful and delicious.



3. If you have a large kitchen staff in your home, or 2-3 days to prepare a meal this is the book for you. The recipes are impractical for anyone at home and I don't understand why they would make a cookbook with such lengthy and involved directions and call it four star "simplicity"



4. The recipes of the best seafood chef in the U.S.
   Great food, very hard recipes.



5. Hello everybody,
   here two lines about this book, too much housewife focused, i was expecting some good tips or any suggestion that can be implemented in a professional environment. Maybe could help if you can highlight clearly the target of clientele.

5 comments about Mes Confitures: The Jams and Jellies of Christine Ferber.

1. This book is one of the most exciting cookbooks that I have used recently. Besides containing standard flavors such as strawberries and peach, it also has the more interesting combinations of Pear with a Balsalmic Vinegar and Spices, Carrot with Cardamom, Strawberry and Balck Pepper, and so forth. Every combination I have tried has been incredibly good, especially the Raspberry with Star Anise. Most of the recipes seem to make about 5-6 half-pint jars, but as it's not stated anywhere in the book, make sure to sterilize a few extra. These jams always come out fresh-tasting and with a slightly soft set, the benefit of using natural pectin in fruit and not adding one. However, since some of the low pectin fruits still require pectin, there is a recipe for green apple pectin stock to provide the needed pectin, great if you have access to underripe apples.
   
   This is a great book, especially for those wanting to take preserve making one step further and try interesting combinations. In fact, trying those interesting combinations certainly got my creative juices flowing and inspired me to make some fun mixes of my own.
   
   However, this is not a book that goes over the particulars involved in preserving foods and canning, and the necessary sanitation and precautions it entails, so any first-time canners need to pick up another book or do some research online for these techniques.
   
   All in all, I would definetly buy this book again if it was ever lost or stolen by the many admiring friends who have borrowed it so far.



2. I have been borrowing this book for over a year and finally bought my own copy. It's worth the price just for the overall technique, even without all of the individual recipes. I have made A LOT of jam out of this book and it always comes out great. Of course, in case you prefer it, this is not the tight hard type of jam - it's luscious and a bit runny. The flavors are delicious!
   
   I don't like using pectin and I don't like paying for pectin. These recipes contain only fruits, sugar, and flavorings. You'll be proud of your product.



3. Yes, this is not for beginners and I am grateful it doesn't take up valuable pages with the basics. As a person who makes 20 to 30 cases of jam a year, this book has affected the scope and quality of my finished product more than any other. Some of her flavor combinations have found their way into my homemade liqueurs with great success.



4. Very nice and interesting book, really a "must have" for people who love home cooking. To me there are few pictures, but the recipes are good!
   Easy and quick to buy on amazon. Thank you!



5. Christine Ferber's artisanal jams at Au Relais des Trois Epis are to die for!
   
   This book contains 70 unique recipes, guaranteed to dazzle friends, family and co-worker's alike. So far I've made the Nectarine, Pear & Vanilla Jam, Strawberry Jam with Black Pepper & Fresh Mint, as well as the Lemongrass & Garden Raspberry Jam--all with stunning results. The recipes are surprisingly simple--fresh picked fruit, sugar, lemon and a little patience (the prep time for some jams require the ingredients sit overnight, or over the course of a few days--trust me, the flavor in the end is outstanding!) The only drawback to this book is that, for beginners, you will probably have to supplement another [book] for basic instruction (methods, safety, etc.), as this is more suited to those with jamming backgrounds. Other than that, it is a fabulous treat for those of us who cannot make it to Alsace to visit her lovely boulangerie-pâtisserie!

5 comments about My French Kitchen: A Book of 120 Treasured Recipes.

1. My French Kitchen / 0-06-082094-2
   
   I absolutely love Joanne Harris' writing and I absolutely love cookbooks, so it seemed like a perfect confluence of interests when I received this gorgeous book for Christmas. I couldn't wait to sit down and thumb through the recipes.
   
   I was a little disappointed that there isn't more 'writing' in this book - it is, for the most part, just a cookbook. There are a few heartwarming recollections scattered at the beginning of each section, but this isn't the Joanne Harris version of "The Book Lovers Cookbook". I'm not sure why I was expecting it to be, but I was a tiny bit disappointed that the book doesn't include (at least) references or passages from Harris' books linked to the appropriate recipe. Oh well.
   
   Unfortunately, I should have read the title with a little more literalism. I live in the American southwest, and I'm afraid that even the biggest organic marketplace in the area doesn't provide fish as fresh as Harris' book recommends and her many recipes for exotic meats are not likely to be tested in my kitchen any time soon - I have a hard enough time finding grass-fed beef, let alone wild rabbit and duck! The exotic French wines, gourmet cheeses, and heirloom vegetables aren't located at the large organic market either. The French wine causes a unique problem for me as well - I have a great deal of trouble digesting alcohol in almost any form and in my American insularity I simply forgot to realize that a *French* cookbook may likely contain wine in most of the included recipes.
   
   In a way, it's really a shame that this book isn't more useful to me. The pictures are lovely and mouth-watering, and the recipe instructions are very simple. I'm not in the least bit upset with Ms. Harris - it's hardly her fault that her French recipes call for French ingredients that can't be located in my corner of the world and/or can't be digested by my own unique biological makeup. I just thought it might be useful to post a review here letting other people know. If you have access to quality, fresh fish, duck, rabbit, French wine, heirloom vegetables, and gourmet cheeses, this is definitely a fantastic cookbook to utilize your bounty!



2. This cookbook is lovely. Being that I just received the book, I haven't had time to make any of the recipes yet, but I did read them all and the majority of them have enticed me to try them. The photos are delightful and give an 'off-the-beaten-path' view of the French culture. Additionally, Chocolat is one of my favorite movies and I've noticed that the author has included several references. This would make a really nice gift for the cooks in your life, particularly the ones who have an affinity for French culture and cuisine.



3. I've only made a few dishes in the short while I've had this book, but there looks to be so many tasty and delicious recipes here: warm goat cheese salad, wild mushroom salad, onion soup, green beans with pine nuts and feta, gascony tomato soup, wonderful fish, poultry and beef entrees, and decidedly delicious deserts! But lets face it folks, I'm a man who loves to spend time in the kitchen and I have enough cookbooks to keep me busy for a while, so why this book? Well, what really sold this book to me, what really sparked my interest, what REALLY played on my most basic neanderthal, simplistic, and testosterone-laden manly instincts was the recipe for this: the Nipples of Venus! How could I possibly not want to taste those? Men the world over will do crazy things for nipples, and the idea that they're Venus's nipples makes it that much better! Even Joanne Harris admits they were originally an Italian confection but she had to put them in this book simply because she couldn't resist the name. A double bonus is that Venus's nipples are made of chocolate! I just can't lose with those, and the only commitment I have to make to get them is the purchase of the ingredients and some time over a warm stove (jewelry, spawning of children, snuggling and a lifetime of monogamous commitment not required)!
   
   Okay, enough uncouth, tactless man-humor. In all honesty, this cookbook has some wonderful recipes and I sincerely look forward to exploring the french kitchen, a culinary area with which I have little experience. Harris makes great use of fresh vegetables, which I love, especially in the hot summer months. The meat entrees will be wonderful in the winter months, as will the soups.
   
   Some of the ingredients seem to be uniquely European or perhaps are available at markets in more cosmopolitan American cities. I probably won't be venturing out to look for black (blood) sausage. I'd probably have to venture out to the town square to find myself a squab (pigeon) for that recipe, but fortunately I can substitute cornish game hen. The recipes calling for fresh foie gras (goose) and duck legs may call for a visit to the pond at the park, but I think I'd really scare the kids at the park if I start trapping the geese and ducks. I'd probably get arrested then run out of town by the militant vegans for hunting the town's geese, ducks and pigeons (but couldn't every city use a few less of those fowl?). Fortunately the militant vegan won't see me in the backyard trapping the rabbit that is to become dinner. I'm pretty sure most of those meats aren't for sale at the neighborhood grocer.
   
   So, some of the recipes are very French, but most of them seem to have standard ingredients that are readily available. And Ms. Harris has put some fun anecdotal stories of her French family kitchen alongside the recipes that make this book a bit more personal.



4. Although this book was well written, it was more a travelogue than a cookbook. There was beautiful photography but I had anticipated a greater variety of recipes.
   
   Deb



5. Nice design and beautiful pictures to present most of the best and traditional recipes of french cooking...I'm french and I offered it especially to share it with my best american friends: now they can try the recipes by themself and enjoy simple good ones at home :-)

5 comments about Pork and Sons.

1. If you love pork, then this is the book for you. Not only is it beautiful, but the author treats the humble pig with the love and respect it deserves. So go out and buy some blood sauage and pig ears and start cooking with Pork and Sons as your guide.



2. Excellent book with a beautiful layout. Well described recipes, albeit using ingredients not always immediately available. Well organized with both European and US sources for the many pig parts used. Brought back memories of long ago with my grandparents and their annual fall hog butchering and the wonderful meals that ensued. Will tempt you to try the unusual and forgotten parts of the pig. A great addition to those who love good food, want to know more about how that food gets to the table, and not afraid to be confronted with honest, unashamed views of old country life.



3. I've never written a review before but felt passionately about how good this book is that I felt I had to add my two cents. Beautifully laid out, with a photograph for each recipe and great background on the pig. Its taking pride of place in my large cookbook collection, highly recommended.



4. Great book by someone who understands and treasures pork as an ingredient and a way of life. Exceptional food pictures accentuate the recipies and other information within the book.



5. This book is definitely one of my go to books when working with pork. I made a version of his pig feet, bacon, caramelized onions dish (page 190) and served it with a homemade mustard...absolutely delicious! Nothing pretentious about this book at all. It's all straight forward.

5 comments about Vegetable Harvest: Vegetables at the Center of the Plate.

1. Patricia Wells never disappoints in the kitchen, and if you loved her other cook books (I do!) you will want this latest. This book celebrates the vegetable. Do not confuse this cook book with those meant for strict vegetarians. I am not a strict vegetarian but I find myself more and more often seeking to extol a vegetable straight from the garden or a farmers' market, rather than a pice of meat. The recipes in this book, make you think about vegetables with a new respect and an increased appetite. Bon appetit!



2. I own several Patricia Wells books and like them all. But this one...I could be wrong, but rather than the product of real inspiration it strikes me as something that was merely due as part of a multi-book contract. Some of the recipes are so basic as to be only just above the level of how to boil potatoes. At least one recipe calls for INSTANT polenta (when's the last time you made instant polenta?). She can't seem to focus on vegetables without meat products, such as stock. Sorry to be a grouch but I was underwhelmed. And not to pick on the other reviews, but I don't get the impression that folks have actually cooked a selection of the recipes. As for me, I'll stick with Bistro Cooking and the Provence Cookbook.



3. This book is both a visual feast for the eyes and a salute to vegetables and the farmers/growers responsible. The book, the latest in a number of cookbooks written by this author, is designed around the premise that vegetables should be center stage on the plate. Instead of creating meals around meats, fish or poultry, the author writes in the introduction she began putting the vegetables first and working everything else around that.
   
   The result is a colorful ode to vegetables that provides many different ways of cooking and using them to shake up the meal and your palate. Moving from appetizers, to salads, to soups, to poultry and meats and ultimately breads and desserts with every stage in between, author Patricia Wells creates meal after delectable meal on paper. Almost every single recipe is illustrated, not with a picture of the dish, but instead with a picture of the vegetable or vegetables for sales in the markets near the author's home in France.
   
   Cooks experienced with various types of cooking equipment and utensils will find these recipes simple while those of us with less experience may find some of the more complex ones intimidating. Still, the instructions are straightforward and understandable and each recipe comes with a small amount of dietary information on calories, fat, carbohydrates, etc. Those on salt sensitive diets may wish to do a little research on items within a recipe before actually making the dish as that information is not provided.
   
   At 324 pages, including an index and a detailed section on various things that each cook, according to the author, should have on hand such as homemade chicken stock, basil-lemon dressing, watercress pesto, etc. this book is aimed primarily at cooks that have the time and skills necessary to go beyond the standard fare. As such, this book is interesting, colorful and inspiring and can be used as tool to increase variety at the table.
   
   Kevin R. Tipple (copyright) 2008



4. 'a joy to experience' is the only way to describe Patricia Wells "Vegetable Harvest".
   As an experienced cook and caterer I applaud the bravery and insight of the author to create this tome which unashamedly champions the bounty of her personal garden .
   One niggle was as an Australian I found the lack of metric measurement in recipes a frustration.
   Vegetable Harvest" is inspirational in its prose, and entertaining with quotes and wine suggestions. One gets the impression of health and vitality from this book without needing to reckon the calorific value of each recipe which is given with other nutritional info for readers .
   I am left with an overwhelming desire to plant my own "vegetable harvest" but failing that, to seek out the best produce that I can afford or find, as the overriding message of this book is one of "reverence for nature and its bounty"
   cheers



5. My goodness! Some of the gushing reviewers sound like they're working for Patricia Wells's publisher! I've always liked her cookbooks; my copy of "Bistro Cooking" is full of cooking stains. And I have a thing for cookbooks. But this one is not worth the money. There's little new here, except for an annoying tendency to stick "piment d'espelette" (try finding THAT in the supermarket) in everything. I have a huge vegetable garden, but I'm much more likely to reach for books by Deborah Madison or Marion Morash or Mark Bittman. Some have called this a "foodie" cookbook, which I call damning with faint praise. There is a certain kind of cookbook that is fun to read in bed (this one is very pretty, with clearly written recipes and nice photos), but doesn't lend itself to constant use in the kitchen. This is one of those.