Customer Reviews

The Country Cooking of France

5 star:		(23)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Make no mistake about the title, "Country" implies neither lack of sophistication, nor compromise on quality of recipe. That said, this book provides a broad spectrum of French cuisine, which makes use of everyday ingredients, prepared in a manner which does not require a mastery of culinary skills. Use of French terminology and the French language itself, is done with purpose and not over-emphasized, nor confusing. Every aspect of a French meal, in terms of courses, dishes and ingredient types, (minus wine) are covered. Dedicated chapters for soups, breads, desserts, various vegetables, "innards & extremeties," frogs and snails, and sauces are all presented in the same descriptive narritive and colorful photography. In addition to the beautiful photography and well written instructions on preparation and execution, there is also a glossary of terms, techniques, ingredients and (basic) recipes, and, scattered throughout the various chapters, vignettes on people, places, and ingredients associated with French cuisine.

If one is to find fault with this book, it is on quantity of photographs. Without actually counting, there are about eight to ten recipes for every, actual, photo of a finished dish. This does not diminish the desire to attempt these delicious dishes, rather it does limit those who wish to make a visual connection with a dish, prior to attempting its replication. Otherwise, recipes are cross-referenced, and the index is well organized.

Technically, this book is a beautifully crafted work of graphic artistry. From the lace-cut dust jacket to the the font, to the country pantry motif, this book is executed well and presented exquisitely, which makes it a great addition to a personal library, and a very fine gift item.

Many years ago, I remember reading through cookbooks. Anne Willan's La Varenne, named for her cooking school, offered tremendous insight into technique applied to based French dishes, and I learned much from it. So I was delighted this Christmas Eve day to receive a review copy of her new book, The Country Cooking of France. There are many books on French country cooking, and, yes, you'll find Salade Niçoise and Pot-au-Feu, but she pulls in many recipes that I hadn't heard of - for example, Galettes Bretonnes au Sarrasin, or Breton buckwheat galettes, in which buckwheat crepes can wrap around such fillings as ham, cheese, or egg (and I'll be trying these tomorrow morning, as we're having ham tonight, and I'll want to do something with the leftovers). There's Turbot Vallée D'Auge (turbot with apple and cider sauce), the Burbundian cheese puff called Gougères, and Salade Tiède de Pommes de Terre, Saucisse À L'Ail (warm potato salad with garlic sausage). The book is beautifully produced - hardback with great photography by France Ruffenach. The only fault I can find is that when I opened the back cover, it started to come away from the spine, which might have been a singular defect, but at a list price of $50 it is a shortcoming that should not be tolerated. All in all, a marvelous new text from someone who deeply understands French cooking and how to write and structure a useful cookbook.

The Country Cooking of France is a very, very helpful cookbook by a seasoned writer and instructor.

I have 3 other books by Ann Willan,and have picked up many techniques, and learned to appreciate French cooking from her lessons in these books.

This book might at first seem, with it's fresh, glamorous photographs, superior to the author's earlier books, which lack the lush photography, however photography isn't everything. Her precise organization, and terse instructions are just as clear as in previous recipes in the earlier books. The photos, (and there could be several times more), are gravy, a rich gravy to savor, especially if you try to match the photograph's appearance with the end result of your cooking of the pictured dish.

I won't go into the individual recipes, as I am not French, and do not know how these recipes "'should" ideally taste to a picky native French diner. I like what i've cooked from the book. Ms. Willan will hopefully continue to publish, and give more recipes for authentic and tasty French Country Food-her word is good enough for thousands of others who enjoy her books. I've certainly cooked quite a few dishes from her previous books to agree.

Now, reading the earlier three books-two La Varenne cookbooks, and Cook it Right can be helpful but not required- these offer a depth of background on cooking that I find useful as a precursor to some of the recipes. Depending on your experience with French cooking, you may find one or more helpful as solid background marerial.

Ms. Willan contines to raise the bar for truly instructive cookbooks. While Damien Pignolet in "French", his beautiful cookbook, is more involved in his instructions, Willan certainly gets the message across clearly.

This cookbook, with it's unique "new" Country recipes, is a must add to a serious French cook's bookshelves.

This book is more than a cookbook. To sit down and read it is to be transported to the French countryside in the company of someone who knows and loves local ingredients and traditional French recipes passed down by generations.

The recipes are meticulously cross referenced with with techniques and the glossary of terms. The section on cheeses is like a basic primer and cheat sheet about French artisan cheese. Each recipe has a narative at the beginning that makes you understand what the end result should be like, by giving you it's history or a story about how the person who's recipe it is lives.

If my house was burning, I'd grab this book. Of course after my dog and cat.

Anne Willan has gifted us all with a truly wonderful tome of french country cuisine. It is of the same quality as her other: La Varenne Pratique. The entries reflect the true approach to the informal cooking of the country - beautiful creations using elements which naturally occur in each area. The recipes are interesting, truly "do-able" and completely delicious. The photos are beautiful and the narrative is accurate and inspiring. This book will be a worthy tool always as well as a lovely goft for any recipient. Cheers.

I decided to buy that book because it features some recipes that my French grandmothers used to make. I have not been disappointed! I tried several of them already (watercress soup, the coq au vin) and I found exactly the taste of my chilhood diners. The recipies are very well explained, accompanied with the tips and tricks that make a dish absolutely perfect. The book covers lot of areas of France, from the most famous to some least known recipes, with historical tidbits of those French regions that are both informative and pleasant to read. The book is also a pleasure to the eyes. The photographs are beautiful. The book is of very good quality. So that can be a beautiful coffee table or a perfect gift. I strongly recommend this book to anyone who want to become familiar or perfect their French cuisine cooking skills. Finally, I find this book very helpful for any French living in the US, who like me is looking for authentic recipes without having to go through the convertions and translation of the French recipes.

As an amateur French chef, I've cooked from Elizabeth David to Madeline Kaman, Julia Child, Jacques Pepin, Samuel Chamberlain, et. al. Willan has clearly cooked her way thru their pages and more. You can find the historical references in almost every recipe. She has taken the best of French culinary tradition, reduced it like a fine sauce and produced an eminently cookable and deeply delicious compendium of the best that France has given the world's table.

This is now the finest French Cookery book that I possess. It is interesting just to read, and is well illustrated. The recipes are well laid out and easy to follow.
Absolutely love it !

Forget the pictures, it's all about having great recipes to work with, and this book delivers. I like just picking out random recipes from the book and being able to whip them out. I've found recipes in this book that are hard to find elsewhere like Tarte Flamme (an Alsatian onion pizza), Choucroute, and the delicious Canneles de Bourdeaux. What sold me on the book was the Cannele recipe. After looking online for a good recipe I was ready to give up since I couldn't get the ingredients, however, my Canneles came out just as good or even better than some of the ones I've sample in Paris. Stop hesitating and get the book, and cook away.

From the author of the great book La Varenne Pratique I would have expected a bit more than this coffee table book. The book contains traditional regional dishes and the recipes are well described. The pictures and paper quality are great and the binding of the book pretty decent. However, in terms of recipes this book contains nothing novel. We get a rather small number of recipes and a few pieces of the author's tips and advice. If you want a coffee table book on French cooking, this is your five star book. As a cookbook I would give it three stars.