The French Menu Cookbook - Hardcover

Olney, Richard

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0879235799 ISBN 13: 9780879235796

Publisher: David R Godine Pub, 1987

Synopsis

As those who knew him will attest, Francophile and food writer Richard Olney was one of a kind-a writerly cook who had a tremendous influence on American cooking via his well-worn cottage on a hillside in Provence. Born in the Midwest in 1927 and drawn to France at the tender age of twenty-four, Olney was unapologetically attracted to the style, flavors, and tastes of French cooking when most Americans were smitten by the wonders of the new prepared foods in their markets. With unrelenting passion and precision, Olney studied and explored the cuisine, carefully documenting all he had learned for future generations of chefs, cooks, and food lovers. His first of several landmark works, THE FRENCH MENU COOKBOOK, was well ahead of its time with its authentic French recipes and then-unheard-of seasonal approach to cooking. Little did we know then that THE FRENCH MENU COOKBOOK would provide inspiration for Alice Waters and her compatriots as they built the groundwork for a culinary revolution in America. Brimming with the honest and enlightening explanations of how the French really cook and the 150-plus authentic recipes, this book is a masterful resource that is a must for every serious cook.

About this title

Review:

The perfect prose is as beautiful as the menus.
-Rachel Cooke in The Observer Food Monthly

Immaculate instruction. Glorious prose. Recipes for serious kitchen folk. My most cherished cookery book.
-Simon Hopkinson

[Olney] was a true genius in the kitchen, and his writing was as sensual and precise as his handling of ingredients. Let trumpets sound to mark the timely resurrections of this, one of his best-loved books.
-Alan Davidson, author of The Oxford Companion to Food

‘Comes wreathed in compliments from people such as Simon Hopkinson, Alan Davidson and Prue Leith … reading it is almost enough in itself; for perfection, give it to someone clever enough to cook it all for you.’ – Telegraph Magazine

‘Meticulous in its advice, the seasonal menus and recipes are superb. Food writing as good as this is rare indeed.’ The Western Mail, No. 8 of the 30 best cookbooks of all time

Henry Harris of Racine told FT Magazine that Richard Olney “writes so beautifully, you can lose yourself in his glorious prose.”

The book was selected by The Week as one of the best cookbooks of 2010 – “this cookbook is the perfect introduction to (Richard Olney’s) ‘passionate and idiosyncratic’ approach to French cooking.”

The Sunday Tribune (Eire) has called it a “seductive read for any Francophile, even better for one who can cook.”

About the Author:

Richard Olney was one of a kind - a scholarly cook who had a tremendous influence on modern cooking via his cottage on a hillside in Provence. Born and raised in Iowa, America he was drawn to France as a young man. Olney moved to a Parisian suburb in 1951 before settling in a run-down property in Provence where he wrote eight cookbooks and consulted on the Time-Life Good Cook series. Olney passed away at his Provencal home in 1999.

About this edition

• Publisher: David R Godine Pub
• Publication date: 1987
• ISBN 10: 0879235799
• ISBN 13: 9780879235796
• Binding: Hardcover