Contains a long essay on French cuisine and offers background stories and
sketches of recipes. This book starts with a short essay on each of the major
culinary regions of France. It consists of chapters on cuisine by type of dish
such as: Sauces, Hors-D'oeuvres and Salads, Soups, Eggs and Cheese, Pates and
Terrines, Vegetables, Fish, and others.Elizabeth David's books belong in the libraries of everyone who loves to
read and prepare food and this one is generally regarded as her best; her
passion and knowledge comes through on every page. She was one of the foremost
writers on food in the latter half of the 20th century and this book has her
most celebrated writing. "French Provincial Cooking" should be approached and
read as a series of short stories, as well written and evocative as the best
literature. The voice is highly personal and opinionated, sometimes sharp but
always true and always entertaining. Here is a long essay on French cuisine,
offering background stories and sketches of recipes more than the slavishly
didactic type of recipes that most modern readers might be used to today. For
many Elizabeth David was the first to introduce us to the French notion of la
cuisine terroir, sometimes interpreted as 'what grows together goes together'.
For David, this is the heart of regional cooking, and the thing which most
distinguishes it from cooking in haute cuisine restaurants where diners arrive
at any time or any season and expect to be able to order any well known French
speciality.; One of the passages which best characterizes David's approach to a lot of
cooking is her opening statement on the perfect omelette: 'As everybody knows,
there is only one infallible recipe for the perfect omelette: your own.' The
book starts with a short essay on each of the major culinary regions of France,
starting perhaps not surprisingly with Provence which is blessed an abundance
of produce. The largest portion of the book consists of chapters on cu
