Larousse Gastronomique Recipe Collection [Paperback]

Librairie Larousse (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 28, 2006

Since its original publication in 1938, Larousse Gastronomique has withstood the test of time and trend to remain the world’s most authoritative culinary reference book.

Generations of serious cooks have turned to it for guidance that encompasses every fashion and taste, making its comprehensive collection of 2,500 classic recipes an indispensable resource. Recently updated, every one of these recipes has now been organized into four compact volumes to create a convenient and essential addition to every cook’s library.
The Larousse Gastronomique Recipe Collection includes:

•Classic meat, poultry, and game recipes, from Boeuf Bourguignon and Osso Bucco à la Milanaise to Glazed Spare Ribs and Chicken Jambalaya

•Quintessential fish and seafood dishes, including Lobster Thermidor, Salmon Koulibiac, Pike Quenelles Mousseline, and Grilled Shad with Sorrel

•Landmark vegetable and salad recipes, such as Asparagus Mousse, Gratin Dauphinois, Mushroom Duxelles, and Corn Fritters

•Timeless desserts, cakes, and pastries, from Charlotte à la Chantilly and Black Forest Gâteau to Passion Fruit Sorbet and Danish Cherry Flan

Each volume of the Larousse Gastronomique Recipe Collection also includes recipes for basic pastries, condiments, garnishes, sauces, and more, turning this collection into a complete course in kitchen classics.

Editorial Reviews

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Braised leg of lamb with spring onions

Calculate the cooking time for a leg of lamb at 40 minutes per 1 kg, 20 minutes per 1 lb, plus an additional 40 to 20 minutes. Cook the lamb in a covered flameproof casserole in a preheated oven at 200°C (400°F, gas 6) for 25 minutes, then drain. Melt some buter in the casserole. Lightly coat 1 kg (2.25 lb) spring onions (scallions) in sugar, then fry them in the butter. Place the leg of lamb on the onions and put the casserole back in the oven. When the onions have softened, add 2 tomatoes, peeled and cut into 8 pieces, and 500 ml (17 fl oz, 2 cups) white wine. Complete the cooking process, turning the leg to make sure it is browned all over and basting it as required with reduced beef stock.

Remove the leg of lamb from the casserole, draining off all the cooking liquor. Drain the spring onions. Cover both and keep hot. Thicken the cooking juices with beurre manié (recipe follows). Carve the lamb. Arrange the spring onions on plates and coat with the sauce. Arrange the lamb on the plates and serve.

Beurre Manié

Beurre manié is a classic thickening mixture of sauces, casseroles and other cooking liquors.

To thicken 500 ml (17 fl oz, 2 cups) stock or sauce, work together 25 g (1 oz, 2 tablespoons) butter and 25 g (1 oz, 4 tablespoons) plain (all-purpose) flour. Add this paste to the boiling liquid and whisk over the heat for 2 minutes.

Fillets of sole à la bordelaise

Prepare some button mushrooms and baby (pearl) onions and cook in butter. Butter a small fish kettle or flameproof casserole and sprinkle the bottom with finely chopped onions and carrots. Season the fillets of sole with salt and pepper and arrange in the fish kettle. Add a bouquet garni and 175 ­ 350 ml (6--12 fl oz, ¾--1½ cups) white Bordeaux wine, according to the size of the container. Poach the fillets for 6-7 minutes, then drain, retaining the liquor. Arrange the fillets on the serving dish surrounded by the mushrooms and baby onions; cover and keep warm. Add 2 tablespoons demi-glace or fish stock to the cooking liquor and reduce by half. Add a knob of butter, sieve and pour over the fillets.

Artichoke hearts à la forentine
Slowly cook some artichoke hearts and some spinach in butter in separate pans. Stuff each artichoke heart with a heaped tablespoon of prepared spinach and coat with Mornay sauce (recipe follows). Sprinkle with grated cheese and brown in a preheated oven at 240°C (475°F, gas 9).

Mornay Sauce
Heat 500 ml (17 fl oz, 2 cups) béchamel sauce. Add 75 g (3 oz, ¾ cup) grated Gruyère cheese and stir until all the cheese has melted. Take the sauce from the heat and add 2 egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon milk. Bring slowly to a boil, whisking all the time. Remove from the heat and add 2 tablespoons double (heavy) cream (the sauce must be thick and creamy). For browning at a high temperature or for a lighter sauce, the egg yolks are omitted. If the sauce is to accompany fish, reduce fish stock is added.

Leckerli
Also known as lecrelet. A spiced biscuit (cookie) with a distinctive flavour, sometimes coated with icing (frosting). It is a Swiss specialty from Basle. The name is an abbreviation of leckerli kuchen, meaning ‘tempting cake’.

Sift 500 g (18 oz, 4½ cups) plain (all-purpose) flour into a bowl, add 350 g (12 oz, 1 cup) liquid honey and beat with a spoon. Add 75 g (3 oz, ½ cup) candied orange peel, 40 g (1½ oz, 1/3 cup) flaked (slivered) almonds, 20 g (3/4 oz, ¼ cup) spices (half mixed spice, half ground ginger), and 1 teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda). (The candied peel and flaked almonds can be replaced with chopped hazelnuts and cinnamon.) Mix well until blended. Butter some square sheets and spread the mixture in them to a depth of 2.5 cm (1 in). Bake in a preheated oven at 180°C (350°F, gas 4), for about 20 minutes, or until well browned. When done, brush with milk and cut into even rectangles.

Product Details

• Paperback: 1536 pages
• Publisher: Clarkson Potter (March 28, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0307336034
• ISBN-13: 978-0307336033
• Product Dimensions: 6.2 x 4.4 x 8.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #978,655 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

37 of 38 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Incredible Breadth and Depth, Great Recipes, April 28, 2006

By 

J. V. Lewis (secure undisclosed location) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Larousse Gastronomique Recipe Collection (Paperback)

I have many times over many years gone to the Larousse Gastronomique as my first step in menu planning before a grand meal. Its encycopedic breadth, its to-the-point informative essays, its side-by-side alternative recipes, and its marvelous way of linking recipes, ingredients, geographical biases and lore into nearly endless chains of ideas is a great inspiration. So often, different sources say very different things about a food, and the Larousse becomes the arbiter of these disagreements. It is authoritative and comprehensive.

But it can be a pain in the tenderloin to use as a cookbook. Its recipes, even in the most recent editions, can be too dense, too full of recondite practices, and just too damned French in their prejudices and presuppositions. So I've always used it as a first source, but rarely for practical guidance with individual dishes. For years I have returned to the same unfulfilled wish: to have the recipes excerpted, reorganized, edited, and cleaned up for kitchen use. Sometimes you just need to know how much onion goes in the soup without all the chauvanistic opinions about onions in their many forms. I am very pleased to say that the editors at Larousse have produced exactly this book.

The book is in fact four: meats, fish and seafoods, vegetables, and deserts are separately bound into four handy volumes. The books are compact, beautifully designed following the old French format of one recipe in paragraph-form per page, with saddle-stitched bindings and stain-resistant covers. The volumes come in a strong paperboard box. With some gentle stretching the books will lie open on the counter. Each volume is intelligently arranged by major ingredient or thematic relevance. Everything is easy to find [assuming you know some French], and easy to use. Leave your full Larousse in the library, and keep this recipe collection near the stove. Or, since it is so incredibly inexpensive at Amazon, buy two and let one get encrusted in Cassoulet sauce.

One caveat: The French-format recipes may take some getting used to. You'll have to be careful to line up your ingredients, since they are not listed except as needed within the paragraph. This format works very well if you are a reasonably experienced cook who is comfortable reading a recipe through and then improvising the dish as you go. If you need precise instructions, other cookbooks might be more accessible. But if you know a mirepoix is a highly-variable mixture of vegetables, you can relax and let the recipes suggest a direction, and adjust as needed. Where exact instructions are more important, with delicate pastries and souffles, for example, you may want to supplement these recipes with a step-by-step cookbook, but for Coq au Vin, just dive in and let go your fears of imperfection.

I highly recommend this monumental compendium for every cook who loves French food. It is fast becoming one of the vertebra of my cookbook library.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Overpriced paperbacks in a self-destructing slip case, not hardback., December 27, 2008

By 

Barthbill (lowse ahnhaylayse) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Larousse Gastronomique Recipe Collection (Paperback)

As another reviewer has noted, "this book is listed as a "hardcover" edition. This collection, in point of fact, consists of 4 paperbound books with a cardboard slipcover." To that, I can add that the cardboard slipcase is incredibly cheaply made. My set arrived with the slipcase torn apart on several edges. It was not damaged, but simply torn by the stress of being moved about with books inside it.

That said, it is a very good, if overpriced, resource for serious cooks. It and its companion encyclopedia (which is actually hardback) are great for cooking or just getting ideas.

I would give it more stars if the recipes were printed in the traditional English-speaking format, making them easier to evaluate, choose and use. Also, it is upsetting to pay so much for paperbacks, which are unlikely to last very long.

In answer to Amazon's question in their guidelines, "What would you have wanted to know before you purchased the product?", I would say, I would have wanted to know that these were paperbacks, not hard bound as stated.

With decent editing and durable binding, I would give 4 or 5 stars.

15 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Great Cuisine Bible, a Must for Every Serious Foodie's Library, April 12, 2006

By 

S. Houston "Epicure" (Philadelphia, PA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Larousse Gastronomique Recipe Collection (Paperback)

Larousse Gastronomique is the ultimate culinary reference for the serious foodie and cook, whether a good home cook or a professional. It was never intended for the person who does not already know something as basic as what a flan case is (or how to boil water) nor for the person who lacks the intelligence to observe that the book is arranged alphabetically, so no cross reference to "flan case" is required. It is only necessary to turn to f-l-a-n, alphabetically. Nor is "a list of ingredients" the truly traditional way to write recipes. Even Gourmet magazine wrote recipes in the paragraph style until the 1980s.

Larousse Gastronomique answers just about every culinary question you have and describes everything you need to know to cook at a world class level using real (not mass-produced processed) ingredients in the traditional way. Not for the person who thinks a great recipe contains canned cream of X soup!

If you have already mastered the basics of real cookery and are ready to step up to great cooking, this is the book for you.