I confess, I have a particular love for cookbooks. In fact, I have so many I haven’t even had time to read through them all. Some I use all the time, as evidenced by the splashes of sauce and water marks crinkling the well-loved pages, and others I have purchased because I heard they were great, but have yet to read. In either case, my pantry cupboard is brimming with recipes by Julia, Ina, Martha, Ree, Joanna, Samin, David, and the like.
And yes, I have several French cookbooks that are well loved.
While I am the first to order a French-inspired dish at any restaurant, I admit that French cuisine can be difficult to replicate at home. Having been a poor college student during the bulk of my time in France, I developed an affinity for French street food in particular: croque madame, sandwich au jambon, crêpes (bien sur), galettes, and anything from a boulangerie.
With my little girls, it is hard to recreate French cuisine that they will also eat (except macarons, of course). But my infrequent French pursuits in the kitchen have still yielded some good results, and a happy collection of French-inspired cookbooks nonetheless. Here are some of my family’s favorite French cookbook recipes that I have tried and met with success:
–boeuf bourgignon– The classic stew from Julia Child. The dish essential to the plot in Julie & Julia. Delicious. Wanting to impress my husband for one of our anniversaries (I forget which), I studied Julia’s recipe for a week before deciding I would give it a go. I went out in search of all the ingredients, and it took me the entire day to make it. Though I felt like it was a very novice recreation of the dish, my husband LOVED it and has asked for it on subsequent anniversaries since. Plus, it makes me feel real fancy when I make it.
–poulet au mutarde– One of my very favorite francophiles, David Lebovitz, has this recipe pictured on the cover of My Parisian Kitchen, and for good reason. It is so delicious! I love the combination of chicken and mustard, so I gave this one a go right away when I got the book, and my family was not disappointed.
–salted butter caramel chocolate mousse– Yes, you heard that right. Another of Mr. Lebovitz’s recipes; I actually made this on the same day I made Boeuf Bourgignon for my husband on our anniversary. This was our fancy dessert of course, and while I’m always a fan of chocolate and salted caramel, oh my goodness this blew me away. It is very sweet and rich, so you won’t need a lot of it to satisfy your sweet tooth (or maybe you will), but I guarantee it will be absolutely delicious! Serve it in fancy parfait cups and pretend you’re in a Parisian bistro.
–galettes– My favorite dinners with my host family in Nantes were the nights that my host mother made galettes: buckwheat crêpes with ham, gruyère, and a fried egg on top (this is called galettes complètes). Brittany is home of the galette, and I would go out in search of them around the town when not eating them at my host mother’s house. I was a bit of a finicky eater before living in France, and was once afraid of the runny yolk of a fried egg. But, not wanting to insult my host mother, I ate anything she served me for dinner (my own mother was shocked and insulted that I would eat anything a stranger made for me, but would have refused the same dishes made by her). I not only liked almost everything I tried, but it broadened my horizons well after my time in France. I have since made galettes dozens of times at home, and while it can be difficult to find buckwheat flower in my little town, it is always worth the effort of searching for it when I have a craving. I even bought this electric crepe griddle for this very purpose a few years ago, although these days I have graduated to the wonderful Le Creuset crepe pan (which is also great for frying eggs).
–crêpes– These really need no introduction. Crêpes are the best French street food there is, filled with anything sweet or savory you could think of. My favorite were always the banana and Nutella (banane-Nutella) variety, but I’ve also had them as simple as with butter and cinnamon sugar. I stumbled upon a vintage crêpe cookbook on the “free” cart at my library one day (shown in photo), tested the basic recipe and it was a success. There are many, many recipes to be found for crêpes, so search for the one that seems easiest to you.
You may have noticed there are more books in the photo of my French collection that I did not discuss in detail. “Mastering the Art of French Eating” by Ann Mah is a great read about the regional delicacies of France, and she includes some delicious looking recipes to try at home. Another great read is “The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry,” by Kathleen Flinn- a fascinating read on her experience at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris, complete with several wonderful recipes in each chapter. “L’Appart” is another of Mr. Lebovitz’s tales of life as an expat in Paris, and no book of his would be complete without at least some delicious recipes one can recreate at home. And macarons, of course, need no further explanation. What are your favorite French recipes you have tried at home? How did they turn out? I’d love to hear!
All of the books I mentioned can be found via the links below. Bon appetit!
The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry, Kathleen Flinn
L’appart, David Lebovitz
My Paris Kitchen, David Lebovitz
Macaron, Pierre Hermé
Mastering the Art of French Eating, Ann Mah
Mastering the Art of French Cooking, Julia Child
Ladurée Macarons, Ladurée
