Cookbook of the Week: A Kitchen in France
Yahoo Food’s Cookbook of the Week: A Kitchen in France: A Year of Cooking in My Farmhouse (Clarkson Potter, 2014)
The Team: Mimi Thorisson, the popular France-based blogger behind Manger, and Oddur Thorisson, “my Icelandic photographer husband.”
The Cuisine: Hearty, seasonal French food. (Not the frilly stuff.)
Who Should Buy It: Those who want to learn the French classics, in a language they can understand. Not only is the book in English, but Thorisson, who didn’t grow up cooking, is forthright when it comes to her recipe writing. Also, those who dream of the pastoral life should buy this book (even if they don’t cook from it). After spending in years in Paris, Thorisson and Co. moved to Médoc, in the French countryside, where she befriended farmers and hunters, learned how to forage in the woods, and found the best place to buy Camembert. Both A Kitchen in France and Manger feature cinematic images of Hong Kong-born Thorisson and her rustic-chic life shelling peas with her well-behaved children’s help.
Who Shouldn’t: Those turned off by escargots or rillettes. Again, this is French food, snail shells, pork fat, and all.
Must-Make Recipes:Creamy parmesan soup, which Stéphane Jégo of L’Ami Jean restaurant in Paris lent to the book, buttery Potatoes à la Lyonnaise, Roast Chicken with Crème Fraîche and Herbs, and classic Crêpes with Salted-Butter Caramel.
Noteworthy: Mimi had one child when she met Oddur; Oddur had two children when he met Mimi. Together, they’ve had four. So, seven kids total. Add 14 dogs, and that’s a very full house to feed.
Check out of other favorite cookbooks:
Tyler Florence’s Inside the Test Kitchen
At Home in the Whole Foods Kitchen
Ina Garten’s Make It Ahead
