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Ducasse Flavors of France |
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Ducasse Flavors of France |
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Dewey Decimal Number: 641.5944 EAN: 9781579651077 Edition: 1st Format: Illustrated ISBN: 1579651070 Label: Artisan Languages: Manufacturer: Artisan Number Of Items: 1 Number Of Pages: 264 Publication Date: November 01, 1998 Publisher: Artisan Studio: Artisan Editorial Review: Product Description: The most anticipated and important French cookbook in many years, Ducasse Flavors of France is a new classic. Brash, driven, and dazzlingly inventive, Alain Ducasse is a larger-than-life figure. At thirty-three, he was the youngest chef to be awarded three Michelin stars, and in March 1998, he became the first ever chef in over sixty years to earn three stars in two restaurants simultaneously. In his long-awaited American cookbook debut, M. Ducasse shares the principles and techniques of a uniqely elemental cuisine that are changing the face of traditional French cooking. Ducasse Flavors of France follows the chef from his state-of the-art kitchens at the Louis XV in Monte Carlo and Alain Ducasse in Paris to his countryside auberge in Moustiers and documents, in one hundred lavishly photographed recipes, the influences--Mediterranean, Provental, and classic French--that permeate his cuisine. Amazon.com Review: Ducasse is a book you'll want to leave out on a coffee table. It is more than beautiful--left open, it has the power to transform the nature of a room with its exquisite photographs and recipes, which are as good to read as they are to cook from. Taken into the kitchen, the power is inherent in Ducasse to transform any meal well beyond the exemplary. But then there's the danger that a spill or greasy fingers might soil the pages, which would be tragic. And yet, this is not just another pretty book, something to thumb through and shrug off. This is a book to take to heart, starting with the first recipe--Fennel "Marmalade"--and then on to Cocotte of Young Spring Vegetables, Spiny Lobster with a Rhubarb-Ginger Chardonnay Sauce, and Chicken Fricassee with Morels, and so on, and so on, until you end up with Coffee and Chocolate Parfait with Dark Chocolate Sauce. Alain Ducasse is the only chef with six Michelin stars to his credit. In his kitchens and in his book he uses the best possible ingredients, treating each and every one with deserved respect. Recipes have been tried and tested to ensure perfection, and--reassuringly--dishes work well in the home kitchen. Ducasse is a wonderful teacher, and every page is filled with rich descriptions of flavor, color, texture, and aroma. Like so much about Alain Ducasse, it is a picture of food that defies language. You will recognize it, though, turning these gorgeous pages, plotting the next dish you choose to master. The opportunity exists with Ducasse to gain a new kind of fluency. --Schuyler Ingle Related Items:
Average Rating:
 Rating:  - You won't be disappointed whether it's in your kitchen or coffee tableI've had this book for awhile, but wanted to wait to try out some recipes before I properly reviewed it. I've done 4 recipes thus far (french toast with seasonal fruit, shrimp toasts, sauteed pumpkin slices crusted with szechuan peppercorns, duck l'orange, and the orange sauce is phenomenal with pork tenderloin as well) as well as using his method for stockmaking. All of which were at worst extremely delicious, or at the top, the best versions I've ever had. His stock technique in particular is so simple, you'll get a noticeable increase in quality (clarity) with minimal increase in work. Were the recipes slightly more fussy than the typical methods? Yes. Are they worth the extra work? So far, yes. Are there shortcuts you can take to make some of the fussiest recipes more accessible? In my short experience with it, also a yes- for example, Bonewerks veal stock is a lifesaver for myself, who doesn't have access to veal bones. Here's some other positives and negatives: Pluses: Beautifully photographed, excellent page and binding quality, useful glossary (which includes substitutions for things like the seafood and mushrooms) and a section on basics like stocks, jus, etc. Techniques are very useful even without his exact ingredient list- just cook with what you have fresh and with good ingredients you have access to and you won't go wrong. Add a teaspoon of Grand Marnier to his french bread soaking mixture for a delicious twist, for example. Very good selection of recipes, and recipe quality and accuracy is great. Negatives: Some recipes can be costly to put together, and others will require substitution which may be a drawback to cookbook purists. If you don't like sweetbreads, foie gras, etc., a number of recipes also feature those, so be aware. You'll want to be friends with a good butcher/fish monger to get the most out of the book, but if you're reading a book like this, you already know that. Also, he features some "menu porn" which describes and pictures a tasty looking dish with no actual recipe measurements to recreate it, which was personally frustrating because the sour cherry clafloutis looked amazing. Considering the high level the rest of the book achieves, those recipes could've still added something had they been included. Overall, I rated the book 5 stars because I've found it accomplishes what every cookbook of it's kind sets out to do; it makes itself as at home in the kitchen, wide open, waiting for the home chef to double check recipe steps, as it does on the coffee table to look good. I bought a used copy for $12, and I still would've been satisfied had I sprung for the new version. Regardless of which version you get, if you're a fan of Ducasse or good cooking, I genuinely think you'll enjoy it, too. Rating: - Great Chef, Beautiful Cookbook, Beginners need not applyI purchased this book on sale for $24.95, however I would have paid the list price of $60 because I feel it is worth it. The photography is absolutely stunning. If you are familiar with Roger Verge's "Entertaining in the New French Style", the photographer is the same. Recipes I have tried with success: Dark Chocolate Tart with Rich Pastry Dough Crust Pear Tart: Raw and Caramelized Jasmine Pots de Creme Criticisms -Many of the recipes require ingredients unavailable in this country. -Many times, the pictures do not quite match up with the recipes, which is very frustrating when looking for visual clues. Overall, this book is for serious chefs or those who want to look like serious chefs by putting this book on their coffee table. Many of the recipes are simple: the filling for the chocolate tart only contains 4 ingredients, but this makes them all the more challenging: there is nothing easy about the recipes. Rating:  - Coffee Table CookbookBig, bold and beautiful describe this volume. From one of the greatest French chefs, too much of this fare is unavailable to the home gourmet. However, savory and well done is this book with its exceptional photos and stylish intros to setup this exquisite cuisine. Some of the soups and simple seafood dishes are about all anyone except the pros could attempt due to lack of ingredients and guts to go after some of these rather complicated recipes. Rating:  - Great chef, average cookbook.There is no denying Alain Ducasse is the chef of the moment. However, this book was somewhat of a disappointment. The recipes are interesting, the photography decent. But the problem lies in the ingredients. Too many recipes call for ingredients that are flat out impossible to find - and he offers no alternatives. It is one thing to ask for truffles, caviar, or duck confit. It is another to require specific mediterranean fish that are not found in this country, or obscure wild game and offal that cannot be had. Substituting chicken, or even quail or pheasant just doesn't cut it.
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