Coquette

Book Review: The Little Paris Kitchen by Rachel Khoo

I have lived with my French man (aka my husband) for nine years. I now understand the nuances of French cooking which I have learned from both my husband and my in-laws, on our many travels to France. French cooking isn't as complicated as most people think. Their dishes incorporate lots of healthy vegetables and stews.

This is why I love Rachel Khoo's new cookbook The Little Paris Kitchen: 120 Simple But Classic French Recipes ($19.88 on Amazon), published by Chronicle Books. First off, who can resist a stylish Brit who sautés while clad in red lipstick looking like she jumped out from an Anthropologie catalog? The Le Cordon Bleu pastry chef grad who has her own BBC cooking show of the same name, cooks her French cuisine in her teeny-tiny Paris kitchen with only a mini oven and two gas rings. It makes you amazed that if this young gal can cook in such a small space with limited equipment, I too can whip up French fare in my "big" (compared to hers) apartment kitchen.

(Photos: Chronicle Books)

Rachel brings in the home-style of French cooking but brings in her own twists which I love. Pot au Feu is an essential soup in our household. We have it a lot in the winter or when someone in the family is sick. Usually by the third day of the big pot of beef soup, we devour it on the first day and by the third day, everyone is over it. Rachel provides some fantastic additional recipes such as sauces and a fajita recipe for the leftover meat and veggies. There is also a classic ratatouille recipe that most will love. For me, it's a great way for me to get my daughter to eat veggies. (I also love how she tries to teach me how to say "ratatouille" in a perfect Parisian French accent.)

Since Rachel is a trained pastry chef, dessert recipes are included in the book, but for me the main entrees and side dishes make this a must have book for everyday cooking. I have read this book cover to cover which I can't say I do for most cookbooks. (The photos of her around Paris are divine!) A lot of the wisdom that Rachel brings in her book, I can hear my father-in-law, Jean-Marie say as well. But I love how Rachel brings her own voice to this with a touch of originality by suggesting or adding other ingredients to create a different twist. My advice to you is to start with some of the stews, seafood and veggie dishes in the cookbook. You definitely won't go wrong. Then work your way up to the more advanced recipes featuring meats and the desserts.

(Photo: EasyLiving UK)

My first recipe I tried from this book was the Spring Lamb Stew (Navarin d'Aagneau Printanier). I know it was delicious because everyone in my family devoured it without saying a word.

The next recipe I am going to try is this Cassoulet Soup. Watch the video above from BBC Food.

I also love what Alexis Watts of Chronicle Books is doing on the Chronicle Books blog. She's trying out recipes from The Little Paris Kitchen over the course of the next few months just like the Julie/Julia project.

Making Artisan Bread

(Photo: coquettenatalie on Instagram)

I have edited quite a few of bread-making articles when I was editor of CRAFT. My mom even had a bakery for years while in my teens. Yet surprisingly, as crafty as I am, I had never attempted to try to bake bread myself. Last week, while crafting at Nancy's house, she presented us with her homemade bread. I couldn't believe that the crust had that wonderful crunch just like from a bakery and there was the wonderful "fresh from the oven warmth" that melted the butter oh so perfectly on top of the bread. I assumed it was complicated, after all I grew up seeing racks and racks of loaves of bread being shuttled in and out of a large brick oven. Nancy assured me it was so easy. She brought out this book, Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois ($16 at Amazon) and let me borrow it. Let's just say it changed my life.

Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day ($16 at Amazon)

I started with the basic artisan boule. The authors talk about how to make the full recipe for the dough and to refridgerate the rest in a container for up to two weeks. (You can also end up using part of that dough to create a sort of sourdough starter for the next batch a few weeks later.) I love that it's no knead. The key, I found is using a baking/pizza stone in the oven to get that crisp outer crust. I bought this Bialetti pizza stone ($12.60) at Target last friday. I didn't get a pizza peel as I took Nancy's suggestion to use just a wooden cutting board but sprinkled with cornmeal. As you can see my technique needs a bit of help as the round loaf got a bit smushed when I tried to quickly flick it onto the pizza stone in the oven.

The basic ingredients you need are all purpose flour and yeast. I used just regular Fleischmann's ActiveDry yeast and not the "instant" kind. The recipe will give you around four one pound loaves. You can cut or double the recipe if you want.

The title of "5 minutes a day" is a bit misleading. I am sure someone added that in because we are always so crazed to do things in just 5 minutes. The process of making the bread is really fast but you do have to account for times for the yeast needs to rise and a half hour for it to bake in the oven. All in all, if you have the dough pre-made and refridgerated, you will have fresh baked homemade bread in about an hour!

(Photo: coquettenatalie on Instagram)

As the loaf cooled down, we enjoyed it with brie and pâté while watching the Emmy's red carpet. I am looking forward to trying out making mini-baguettes (we never finish full baugettes and they always get so hard in a day), as well as brioche. Nothing smells better for your home than fresh baked bread. This is also a wonderful gift for friends, dinner parties or just because.

Crafty DIY Roundup

BurdaStyle features eight new patterns inspired by the roaring 20's. I love this color block dress that features lots of panels and a low waist band. All of the dress patterns look fresh and modern for today's gal. Time to dust off your sewing machine!

My crafty friend Meg Allan Cole shows you how to make this driftwood wall garden that is a beautiful decor piece for your home. Subscribe to her awesome DIY videos on You Tube on her channel, Meg Allan Cole Crafts.

I don't know what it is about summer, but I love making at eating guacamole. Katie Goodman from GoodLifeEats was one of my favorite food contributors when I was editor at CRAFT. She always has great Tex-Mex recipes and her Roasted Salsa Verde Guacamole Recipe is perfect for summer lunches and snacks.

Also a quick alert to Bay Area peeps that the Renegade Craft Fair will be coming to San Francisco on the weekend of July 21-22, 2012 at the Fort Mason Center.

Crafty DIY Roundup

I'm missing the craft community a lot lately and just had a great catch up call with Erica from P.S. I Made This... which made me remember all the fun fashion-related crafty projects I loved to read about. I'm going to try to do a roundup every other week. It's a reminder that fashion is fun and doesn't always have to be bought in a store. I also love food and new recipes so I'll try to include those as well.

I always encounter people who think they aren't crafty but it really just takes one project to make to get you hooked with the crafting bug. Find an easy one to tackle and just give yourself a hour or a few to have fun with it and not worry about the end result. For starters, I love Erica's Knot Rope Necklace (inspiration board here) which is oh so very easy to make and is totally on trend with the rope detail and bright colors. Enjoy making it and wearing it around town while the compliments pour in.

Dip Dye Ombre Ballet Flats by Amiee Santos of Swellmayde, as featured on Unique

Geek Chic iPad Case (sewing project) by Lisa Lam of U-handbag.com from her new book, A Bag for All Reasons, as featured on How About Orange

Cerviche de Vegan by Joseph Shuldiner from the book Pure Vegan, as featured on the Chronicle Books blog.

The OCD Chef Cutting Board

Do you ever wish you could chop your veggies more evenly? I love this Fred The OCD Chef Cutting Board
($17.29 at Amazon). It's the perfect way to practice your fine julienne dices to impress your friends. Just line up your veggies in the grid and chop away. As a crafter, I love the precision you can get with the detailed grids. The beechwood board is 9 X 12" and also makes the perfect gift for your favorite newbie chef.

I can't help but recall Phil Hartman's classic SNL skit of the Anal Retentive Chef. Watch it now if you haven't seen this.