My Favorite Cookbook - Now in English!

THIS IS NOT A RECIPE. IT IS A PLUG FOR A COOKBOOK OF WHICH I AM A FAN AND HAVE BEEN FOR DECADES. I DO NOT KNOW THE PUBLISHER OR ANYONE INVOLVED WITH IT. I WILL NOT MAKE A DIME FROM IT. I AM TELLING YOU ABOUT IT BECAUSE I PROMISED TO SHARE MY COOKING SECRETS WITH YOU AND THIS IS CERTAINLY ONE OF THEM!

I have often written about my French mother-in-law, Loulou who has taught me many secrets known to the French and little known to others.  I have also referred to how much I have learned from many of the French chefs with whom we are friends and with whom I have had the enormous privilege of cooking. But the truth be known, the person who has taught me the most about French cooking is someone I have never met - a certain Evelyn Sainte-Ange.

First published in 1927, La Bonne Cuisine De Madame Saint-Ange is the “bible” of French cooking technique, and is found on most kitchen shelves in France. A housewife and a professional chef, she wrote in a highly instructive style, explaining in extraordinary detail the proper way to cook just about everything. During my years in France I used this cookbook to learn how to make many of the French classics and especially on how to cook game (Gerard is an avid hunter!). Among the students of her technique was Julia Child herself whose recipes were often influenced as much by Saint-Ange as they were by the famous Parisian “Le Cordon Blue Cooking School”. 

For years, I struggled through the long texts in French, learning as much about the language as I did about the cuisine. I used the book so often that after 20 years it was so smudged with cooking stains that I was forced to buy a second copy – which by the way has by now also seen better days.

I learned that it had recently been translated into English and I immediately bought myself a copy. I am thrilled! Over 1300 recipes explained in detail. A number of people close to me will be receiving this for Christmas (including my two daughters!!  If you are interested in French cooking or know someone who is - this is a treasure.