Paris_ The Collected Traveler - Barrie Kerper [112]
COOKBOOKS
I have long felt that you cannot separate the history of food from the history of a city or a country—they are intertwined, especially in France. Consider: Henri IV’s famous pronouncement that every family in his realm should be able to afford stewed chicken—poule au pot—every Sunday; the fate of chef François Vatel, who supposedly invented crème chantilly for a banquet in honor of Louis XIV at the Château de Chantilly, but then, after several mishaps including a late fish delivery, committed suicide before the crème was ever served; or the origin of the word “bistro,” possibly derived from Russian soldiers (occupying Paris in 1814 after the defeat of Napoléon) who felt food service was too slow, so they pounded their fists on tables and shouted, “Bistro!” meaning “Hurry!” Really great cookbooks—the kind with both authentic, tried-and-true recipes and detailed commentary on food traditions and unique ingredients—are just as essential to travel as guidebooks. The books below are my favorites for French and/or Parisian recipes. All I really need to note about them is that I turn to these often—I consider most to be as worthy as classic novels.
60-Minute Gourmet (Times Books, 1979) and More 60-Minute Gourmet (Ballantine, 1986), both by Pierre Franey. Franey’s column for the New York Times, featuring recipes that would take less than an hour to prepare, was a nationwide sensation when it appeared in 1975. Franey ushered in a new era of American cooking, but in the French style: all these recipes are French inspired, with titles in French, and all are reliable winners—many suited to weeknight cooking—for serving to family and friends.
Barefoot in Paris, Ina Garten (Clarkson Potter, 2004).
Bistro Cooking, Patricia Wells (Workman, 1989).
The Cook and the Gardener: A Year of Recipes and Writings from the French Countryside, Amanda Hesser (Norton, 1999). Hesser cooked for Anne Willan, founder of L’École de Cuisine La Varenne, for a year in Burgundy. (The school [lavarenne.com] is now located in California.) Hesser reminds readers that the stuff of a garden should never be very far away from a kitchen.
French Cooking en Famille, Jacques Burdick (Ballantine, 1989).
Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Volume I by Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle, and Simone Beck (1961) and Volume II by Julia Child and Simone Beck (1970), both published by Knopf. When I want to make the most classic of French dishes, I turn repeatedly to this set. I have never, ever been disappointed, though unlike the spirited Julie Powell (of Julie and Julia fame), I have not cooked every single recipe in these two exemplary volumes.
Saveur Cooks Authentic French, the editors of Saveur magazine (Chronicle, 1999). “French food,” as noted in the introduction, “is rich, its flavors concentrated, but it can satisfy in small amounts. No one eats cassoulet every day, and none but the most voracious have a second helping. But that one serving, once in a while, is a treasure house of flavors resonant of good living; it feeds the soul as well as the body.” This book is also valuable for “Our French Restaurants,” a great province-by-province guide to favorite places throughout the country.
The Taste of France, Robert Freson (Stewart, Tabori & Chang, 1983). This is that rare volume, one hundred great recipes paired with 375 fabulous photographs by Freson, plus outstanding contributions by Anne Willan, Alan Davidson, Jill Norman, and Richard Olney. A twenty-fifth anniversary edition was published in 2007.
Baking
I became a home baker because I was so inspired by the French art of pâtissier, but also because it seemed that every time I was invited to someone’s house for dinner, dessert was always an afterthought, some preservative-laden cake or pie purchased from the freezer section of a supermarket.