Hey my tiny cookbook collection just got bigger, I just got gifted the Alinea & French Laundry cookbooks. Both books are by chefs I have admired from far, Grant Achatz of Alinea and Thomas Keller of the French Laundry. Grant Achatz has worked previously for Thomas Keller at the French Laundry. Both books feature great photography, I have been spending a lot of time just looking at the pictures and dreaming of cooking & eating from the recipes……. I’ll start cooking from them soon, anyway. Thomas Keller’s food is perfect in its execution, whilst Grant Achatz is all about pushing boundaries. From the French Laundry book you will learn like how to make the best agnolotti, from the Alinea book you will make dry caramel that instantly melts once it is in your mouth, it’s a cute trick using tapioca maltodextrin, very avant-garde stuff.
After I am done with staring at all the cute pictures, I’ll starting cooking from the books. Both books are quite challenging, with the French Laundry it is in obtaining the best produce to cook with, the recipes in Alinea cookbook require some specialized equipments & new age cooking powders. That said, it should be fun cooking from both books. A lady in the USA has cooked & blogged from the entire French Laundry cookbook http://carolcookskeller.blogspot.com/ & now she is working her way through the Alinea one now http://alineaathome.typepad.com/. That means their is hope for us mere mortals.
Pingback
by Chilled Pea Soup, Mint Chantilly & Parmesan Crisp | The Porky Gourmand
28 Apr 2009 at 20:17
[...] This lovely soup is about all the peas you use, so taste the peas raw before deciding if you want to use them to make the soup. Tasting will also help you decide if you want to tweak the sweetness with some sugar. The method I used to prep this soup is loosely based Thomas Keller’s english pea puree & his big pot blanching technique, which are found in his French Laundry cookbook. [...]
Pingback
by Pineapple Chop à la Thomas Keller | The Porky Gourmand
21 May 2009 at 21:53
[...] a previous post I told you that I got Thomas Keller’s French Laundry cookbook, the book has lots of great [...]
Pingback
by Sausage Ravioli, Brown Butter & Crispy Sage | The Porky Gourmand
23 Jul 2009 at 14:15
[...] Since I recently tried my hand at making pasta at home, making my own ravioli seemed to be the next logical step. I modified my pasta dough recipe, added more egg yolks just to enrich it. My choice of the pork sausage filling was one of convenience, there was sausage in my fridge. The brown butter & crispy sage was an idea I picked up from the French Laundry Cookbook. [...]