Customer Reviews

Cooking with Pomiane (Modern Library Food)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(0)
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2 star:		(1)
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This is the one cooking book I reach for time and time again. Everything in here turns out fabulously well, and the text is so humorous and engaging, I find myself just reading it for pleasure. One word of warning; it will require some adaptations if you are on a fat free diet, as many of the recipes are loaded with butter and cream. Of course, that's what makes them so delicious!
Try this book, it's the best.

This is my favourite cookbook-- or should I say my favourite food cookbook (The Anarchist's Cookbook is my fave overall). There are lots of recipes in here for all dishes and occasions- be it a fancy dinner or a not-so-fancy dessert- and the good news is, most of them are of the minimalist tradition, so no complicated procedures or fancy-schmansy ingredients. Just plain old good food, and believe me, if you follow Pomiane's and tips, you'll be cooking like a pro in no time!

I have the original Pomiane cookbook - in french. Unfortunately this translation does not do it justice. For example confusing the" pāte" ( as in pāte a Choux ) meaning dough and pate - With the accent on "E" meaning - well pate ( as in liver pate).
Also missing are his funny "asides"

This is an absolutely delightful read. I haven't tried any of the (delicious-sounding) recipes yet, but just reading this book was enough to whet my appetite! I particularly enjoyed his many witty asides and poetic turns of phrase. Highly recommended. Also take a look at "Clementine in the Kitchen", another charmer.

This is my favourite cookbook-- or should I say my favourite food cookbook (The Anarchist Cookbook is my fave overall). There are lots of recipes in here for all dishes and occasions- be it a fancy dinner or a not-so-fancy dessert- and the good news is, most of them are of the minimalist tradition, so no complicated procedures or fancy-schmansy ingredients. Just plain old good food, and believe me, if you follow Pomiane's and tips, you'll be cooking like a pro in no time!

Writing and broadcasting in the first half of the 20th Century, the food scientist Edouard de Pomiane encouraged French housewives to 'cook their heritage' while facing the increasing complexity of life for a modern French woman. Moving beyond the classic all-day cooking of the housewife, Pomiane pointed to the need to simplify meal preparation in the home. It is not surprising that Ruth Reichl, former restaurant critic for the New York times and Editor of Gourment Magazine, selected this book for a Modern Library edition. The introduction is by Elizabeth David, the outstanding British food writer who also wrote a major book on French cuisine. Pomiane's 'hasty cooking' formula also inspired French-born chef/author Pierre Franey to create his landmark New York Times column 'Sixty Minute Gourmet.' This is a significant cook/food book and it is also highly readable. Pomiane's writing persona is evident on every page of his text: he is an avuncular uncle who wants you to eat sensibly and to eat well. He intends for you to be successful in realizing the recipes for the dishes he presents. He knows that every penny (centime) counts at home but that attractive and tasty meals are still imperative.

This is not Julia Child's Art of French Cooking. In 276 pages (plus a good index, organized by courses),Pomiane starts at the beginning. He reminds us of the duties of both host and guest and the importance of preparing and sharing digestible food. He sets out simple explanations of the major cooking processes: boiling, frying, grilling, roasting and braising. He offers some sensible remarks on the application of various levels of heat in cooking. As a 'first cookbook' on the preparation of homestyle French food, only a few select recipes are offered in each of the categories we might choose from in making a dinner or a small repast: soups, eggs, cheese dishes, savory tarts and crepes, salads, common sauces and sweet dishes. He concludes with a chapter on a few memorable meals: 'a lunch in the country,' 'supper in the high mountains,' 'two good dishes for two 'little' wines,' 'lunch by the sea' and even 'food for camping.' This section is written as a reminscence and we feel that we are accompanying Pomiane as he ponders what to serve, then shops for ingredients and then tells how he prepared the meal under each set of circumstances.

A typical American reader will be transported to France, surely, but one needn't be a Francophile to find recipes in each section of the book that are easily prepared with American ingredients, sound tasty on the page and are described in a way that promises 'pretty on the plate.' Pomiane offers three poached egg dishes: one seasoned with paprika butter and presented on a canape of bread, one sauced with canned tomato puree spiked with a little fresh garlic and a good olive oil and one sauced with browned chopped mushrooms in cream and herbs. There is a simple Basque-style omelette (with sweet red peppers and garlic.) Favored ingredients among the French may be underappreciated here but, in addition to a splendid 'poule au pot' (poached chicken with beef and vegetables), Pomiane offers some very tasty preparations for rabbit and hare. My meat market here (in Texas) always has farm-raised rabbit available and I enjoyed learning about a meat more commonly enjoyed by my ancestors. Pomiane's method with carp would work equally well with bass or trout. There are a bequiling number of 'mousse a la creme' variations: orange, Cognac, Curacao, Hazelnut, Montmorency Cherries, Chocolate mousse and even a coffee mousse!

All of this is wrapped up in a volume that bears reading and rereading whether you are searching for inspiration for dinner or just looking for some pleasant companionship.

This is much, much more than a cook book, it is a delightful tale of cooking amidst the cookbook.

Edouard de Pomiane has produced one of those cook books that can be read for shear enjoyment apart from ever stepping foot in the kitchen, though his recipes are fabulous too.

He talks to you about being not just a good host or hostess but a good guest too, because that also requires skill and grace: "As soon as one is seated at table between fellow guests, one is torn by conflicting feelings- a desire to enjoy the meal to the full whilst respecting the claims of good manners, and a reluctance to ruin one's digestion." And, "Don't make a bloomer on arrival. If the house is luxurious, let your coat fall carelessly into the hands of a waiting servant, pull off your gloves and make your enteé. If the household is a modest on your hostess will greet you in the hall, which is much more cozy. In this case, have the courage to..."

de Pomiane takes the mystery out of cooking so that the actual cooking will not be a mystery and you can proceed with confidence even while not following a recipe exactly.

His recipes are very European: Choux Pastry Gnocchi, Tourte au Mouton, Platée de Pommes, Tarte Pātissiere.

I just love his comments throughout, "When the first garden strawberries of the year make their timid appearance they are still small and terribly expensive. How is one to eat them? With cream and a trace of cognac or Maraschino? No, one must savor to the full the flavor of these first fruits of early summer. I like to sprinkle them with pure white sugar and add nothing else to distract from their own fresh fragrance."

It is clear to me why Ruth Reichl chose this book in her Modern Library Food series.