The Best Cookbooks List

FRENCH CLASSICS MADE EASY: by Richard Grausman

French Classics Made Easy: More Than 250 Great French Recipes Updated and Simplified for the American Kitchen by Richard Grausman.

Can I just say how totally in love I am with this cookbook??!! I think I have to admit that right now, because I am going to regale you with my delight at owning this new updated version of the original 1998 cookbook, At Home With The French Classics.

First of all, let me tell you about the author. Richard Grausman is a Cordon Bleu trained culinary instructor and cookbook author. He is founder of the non-profit Careers Through Culinary Arts Program, and has been educating young chefs and home chefs about the culinary arts for almost forty years. He is a pro. He is a wonderful communicator. And he know exactly how to explain a recipe so that you want to drop everything and try it. 

This is my kind of cooking. I love classic French cuisine. I love whipping up souffles and terrines, or a Tarte Tatin or rows of puff pastries. However, I was merely skimming the surface. 

For instance, take souffles. I learned from Richard's book that I could prepare them in advance, and bake them at the last minute. I learned a technique where they don't necessarily need the paper collars I envelope them in. And I received a pat on the back for still using my huge copper bowl to hand beat the whites.

Next chapter: fish mousse! In all its glory and variations. Then quiches, soups, main courses and desserts. Almost every recipe is a favorite of mine and offers a different spin on how to make it, causing me to write up a long list of recipes I want to try from this book: Savory Gruyere Pastry Ring Filled With Cheese Souffle, Stretching Noodles (!), Truffled Chicken, Chicken With Riesling, Cream Puffs Filled With Chocolate Souffle,Ladyfingers, and a classic Paris-Brest. And I want to try Richard's Chocolate Genoise With Grand Marnier Ganache (plus its variation, the Sachertorte).

I love the way he explains a recipe, then provides illustrations of how to visually build it, asides that describe variations on the main dish, and short interesting bits about other ways to use the same ingredients for other dishes or the special molds or dishes needed to make the dish: resulting in a delicious discussion thread that makes each chapter a pleasure to read.

He sealed the deal when I came to his chapter containing recipes for dessert omelets, one of my weaknesses! I adore making a deep chocolate omelet for weekend breakfasts. Richard's become after dinner desserts: Orange Souffleed Omelet, Apple Omelet With Calvados, and Strawberry Filled Omelet With Cointreau. Yum!!!!!! Sign me up! Oh, and the recipe for Riz A L'Imperatrice, something you definitely won't find on restaurant menus anymore, is divine and worthy of a special occasion. And a final round of applause for Richard's recipe for Floating Island (Ile Flottante), a dish that has always eluded me (although it is a simple farm house dish) and which Richard solves by baking the meringue rather than bathing it. Easy! 

So you see, this wonderful cookbook is perfect for beginners who want to learn the basics, as well as for people like me who have "cooked French" forever and still have a few new tricks to learn!! I am thrilled with this book, the closest thing I have to a Julia Child cookbook. Interesting to read, breaking down difficult French recipes so they are totally easy to make, and appreciating that in America we have to use substitutes for a lot of the classic ingredients we can't get here. A plus: Richard takes time with each recipe to relate how he has "lightened" it up from its classic rich butter and cream origins, preserving the flavor and reducing the calories. All in all, I would say this is a just about perfect French cookbook.

 

THE FRENCH COUNTRY TABLE by Laura Washburn

The author of this new cookbook, Laura Washburn, is an American who studied in France, used to work for Patricia Wells, and now lives in England, so I was interested in seeing what her take on French food was. 

The French Country Table: Simple Recipes for Bistro Classics is not a big cookbook. Rather, it offers a few simple recipes under each section to make it easy for home cooks to create simple bistro style French dishes. For instance, under appetizers, there are five recipes to try: Rustic Pate, Mackerel Pate, Garlic Prawns, Crudites, and a Goat Cheese Tart. 

Even under the soup section, all has been simplified. I love making Soupe au Pistou, but mine takes all day. I love making it and look forward to it each Spring. This version is considerably pared down in preparation time and ingredients, making it easier to cope with for busy people.

Easy peasy is the theme. Under the chapter, Simple Dishes, there are five recipes to try your hand at: Ratatouille; Macaroni Gratin; Pumpkin and Rice Gratin; Eggplant, Onion, and Tomato Tian; and Potatoes With Reblochon.

When I was a newlywed, someone gave me a cookbook called "The Daughter-In-Law's Cookbook", which was written by a mother for her new daughter-in-law who was just learning how to cook. Although by then I was an accomplished home cook, it was still a delightful reference to have on hand. I think this new cookbook falls under that category. It would be an ideal gift for someone just starting out who wants to try preparing French cuisine. It is approachable with charming photography and has enough choices that anyone could pair recipes from the book to create a lovely French meal. If you know someone who wants to learn how to cook simple French bistro food, this would be an excellent choice.

The French Country Table: Simple Recipes for Bistro Classics by Laura Washburn

I am going to share with you a recipe from the book:

Walnut Cake

Printable Recipe

Need 9 inch round cake pan, greased

Ingredients:

1 stick plus 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened

1 cup sugar

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise with a small sharp knife

4 extra large eggs

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1 cup walnuts pieces, ground walnut halves to decorate

Caramel Frosting Ingredients:

1/2 cup sugar

a squeeze of lemon juice

2/3 cups heavy cream

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 400 F.

2. Put the butter and sugar in a large bowl and beat until fluffy. Use the tip of the knife to scrape the vanilla seeds (and add in). Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Using a spatula, gently fold in the flour and ground walnuts. Transfer to the prepared cake pan.

3. Bake in a preheated oven for 25-35 minutes, until browned and a knife inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let cool slightly, then unmold while still warm.

4. To make the caramel frosting, put the sugar, lemon juice, and 3 tablespoons water in a heavy saucepan and cook, stirring, until it turns a light caramel color. Carefully add the cream (it can spatter), stirring until blended.

5. Put the cake on a wire rack set over a baking sheet to catch the drips. Pour over the frosting in a thin, even layer. Decorate with walnut halves and leave for at least 2-3 hours before slicing, until the frosting has set.