With most chefs and authors working hard to craft their recipes and extra care given to create aesthetically beautiful layout and imagery, I have always been a big believer in the value of a good cookbook. There is of course no doubt how remarkably important online resources can be, but a thoughtfully curated physical cookbook will hold a special place in your heart that the internet just cannot replicate. For most, a favorite cookbook will be a treasured item you’ll keep on your shelf and one you’ll likely go back to countless times.

As far as learning French cooking goes, it is all but impossible to start without mentioning a few timeless cookbooks such as Mastering The Art of French Cooking by Julia Child, Le Guide Culinaire of Escoffier, The Larousse Gastronomic and Paul Bocuse: The Complete Recipes.  For Americans, these cookbooks are great to learn the basics of Classic French cooking. But it should be noted that French cooking has evolved a lot since Escoffier or Julia Child’s era. Dishes today tend to be lighter, desserts are less sweet and regional cooking better embraced. 

This is why I wanted to curate for you a list of some of my favorite newer French cookbooks (in English), that perhaps better reflect the ways in which French people cook and eat today. When laying out this cookbook list, I favored accessible recipes, beautiful photography and easy-to-find ingredients for people living outside of France. I own most of these cookbooks on my shelves, and regularly turn to them to try out something new, perfect a recipe or just for inspiration.

I hope you’ll enjoy this list of cookbooks for French cooking lovers! If you have any favorites that aren’t listed here, feel free to add a comment. 

Favorite French Recipe Collections

Parisian-focused Recipe Collections

French Baking Recipe Collections

French Drinks Recipe Collections

Disclosure Notice: This post contains affiliate links. This site is a participant in the Amazon Associates Program. If you click on an affiliate link, I may earn advertising or referral fees if you make a purchase through such links, at no extra cost to you. Read the Privacy Policy & Disclosure page for more details. The books’ descriptions aren’t my own, they are excerpts taken from Amazon and/or Indigo. The list has been made in no particular order of preference.  

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Simple Seasonal Recipes for Everyday Cooking. 

This past year, probably more so than ever, we have spent plenty of time in our kitchens cooking, baking and playing around with new recipes and flavors. We were also reminded of the importance of supporting our local businesses and farmers, and to play our own part in fostering strong and sustainable local food production. Therefore, along with continuing to share all my favorite French recipes here on this blog, I wanted to create a new outlet to offer you quick and easy recipes that you can recreate in your own kitchen, by sourcing fresh and local products, wherever you are.

Each season, through a collection of tested until perfected recipes, À Table with Audrey will inspire you to rush to your local farmer’s market to embrace seasonal produces and make quick, simple, delicious recipes in your own kitchen. Of course, you may find a little French flair in a few of the recipes, but it’s not the focus. I am simply sharing some favorite recipes I love to make and eat with in-season produce.

Buy now

4 reasons to buy this e-magazine:  

• To get 15 exclusive recipes, tested until perfected (+ a few bonuses!).
• To enjoy ad-free content.
• To support my work as a recipe developer, writer, photographer and content creator. 
• $1 from each e-magazine sold will be donated to Food Banks Canada.

Recipe index: 

• Green Pea & Mint Soup 
• Dutch Baby Pancake with Smoked Salmon
• Egg & Avocado Toast with Green Peas & Radishes
• Honey Roasted Radishes with Yogurt Spread 
• Fresh Herbs & Feta Tart
• Asparagus Chicken Pasta with Lemon & Feta 
• Braised Chicken Thighs with Rhubarb 
• Audrey’s Sauce Verte 
• Lemon Butter Baked Cod with Asparagus & New Potatoes 
• Spring Panzanella Salad with lemon yogurt dressing
• Soft Cinnamon Buns with Cream Cheese Frosting 
• Mini Strawberry Pavlovas
• Layered Carrot Cake 
• Buckwheat Honey Baked Cream 
• Chocolate Beetroot Cake
• Strawberry Banana Kefir Smoothie 
• Homemade Dish Soap 

Buy now

Unfortunately, no refunds will be issued for any purchase of this e-magazine. 

The post My e-magazine “À Table with Audrey” (Volume 1, Spring 2021) is out! appeared first on Pardon Your French.

I’m so pleased to be able to share this book with you. Some of the feedback received over the past few weeks has been amazing – some of which you can read here: 

• Publishers Weekly review
• Niagara This Week: “NOTL’s Audrey Le Goff unlocks French Food for all” 
• Bon Appetit: Author makes French Cuisine “approchable” in new book. (p.20)

With that said, I wanted to take a moment to share with you some notes on the recipes you’ll find in the book: how they were selected, developed, tested, written – and perhaps most importantly, how you can successfully recreate these dishes in your own kitchen. 

Notes on the Recipes from the book

The collection of recipes from the book is not about the whole of France (a lifetime of books wouldn’t be enough to encompass all of it). But it is about the most memorable recipes that I have encountered in France so far, and some of the most essential and timeless recipes from each French region that you will find made and shared in French family homes.

With that, the recipes in the book are French through and through. For as far I can remember, I have written down all my favorite French recipes in notebooks that I kept preciously at the bottom of my suitcase wherever I would travel, or live. I gathered these recipes from old worn-out cookbooks, dinner memories with friends and family, and travels and encounters throughout France. Once home, I test and re-test all recipes, always adding my own twists and naturally adapting them to my own skills, time and available ingredients – as a modern French homecook, now living outside of France.

Recipes in this book range from light to generous, from easy to less-so, from quick to slow. Mostly, they don’t require any expertise or technique. Achieving and keeping an authentic taste is always my priority. Some recipes are as traditional as they can be, and some require a few substitutions (if certain ingredients aren’t available outside of France). These substitutions are always made in the most thoughtful way, to ensure the recipe remains accessible to everyone while never impacting the signature flavours of the dish. You will notice there is no dietery restrictions in this book; it’s simply all about pleasure.

I should also mention that although some recipes are easily attributed to a region, some aren’t. When searching into a recipe’s background and birth place, I sometimes only uncovered another dozen very similar recipes. Like their origins, the stories behind the creation of recipes are truth to some, and perhaps anecdotal to others. Through regions and times, longstanding recipes and their stories fused and mashed, leaving us with myriads of versions and hypotheses behind them. In this book, I am sharing my version and story of them; but be assured you could open another French cookbook to find a recipe under the same name, with another story and version being told.

How to Successfully Achieve the recipes

French cuisine is known as a precise art; but I believe it doesn’t always have to be. In baking, sure, precision and following directions are key. But for some other savory recipes, the serving portions, weights and measurements are here to guide you to achieve successful recipes. But if you wish to add more mushrooms to a stew, two extra pieces of chicken or a bigger splash of calvados, it is perfectly fine (as long as the integrity and soul of the dish isn’t altered). In France, every region, every town, every family has their take on a recipe; which shows how there is always room for personal expression. When tasting the same dish in different cities, I always expect it to be different from one another, and it always is. Tweaks and twists are not only acceptable, they are somewhat expected. They’re what keeps a recipe alive and makes an old-timey dish, a dish that never gets old. Homecooking as done in France is liberating, free of stress. It’s simply about getting pleasure and bringing pleasure to the table. I think this goes with expressing your creatvity, and your own judgement of course. With that in mind, a key for acheiving a successful recipe is to taste. Your palate is your best friend. Taste, taste, adjust seasonings, and taste again.

The French Pantry

Throughout my years of living outside of France, I have developed a list of pantry staples that allows me keep authentic French flavors in my cooking. Whether alternative flours used in different regions of France (buckwheat, chickpea), specialty dairy products (crème fraiche), herbs and spices, or regional spirits (Calvados, Armagnac, Kirch…), these items are always in my pantry – and you will find them used in many recipes from this book. Adding a sprinke of Espelette pepper on an egg or a splash of Calvados in a sauce… these are the small details that will bring authentic and unreplicable French flavours to your table.

You will encounter these items throughout the book under “The French Pantry” side notes. I have kept the list short and sweet, and attempted to keep hard-to-find French ingredients to a minimum in the recipes that follow them. All the products listed are all available in North America. Some are widely available in grocery stores, and some might need a little (worthwhile) effort to be tracked down in specialty stores, bulk food stores or online.

The post “Rustic French Cooking Made Easy” is out! appeared first on Pardon Your French.

My opinion might definitely be a bit biased, but I love this cover – even more, as I know how much work went into designing it and taking the photos. It took a lot of deliberation to pick which font, colors, textures and photos were going to make it on the cover. Thankfully, my editor along with the designers and the publishing team at Page Street Publishing were a huge help. They shared their recommendations with me, in order to create a cover that would make me happy as much as it would make my readers happy and excited about the book. Being offered valuable opinions and insights from professionals (something you don’t often benefit from as a solo blogger) was amazing. I cannot thank Page Street Publishing enough! 

The book is hard-covered, draped in a linen-textured blue paper with rustic-inspired white embossed fonts. I think it is simple, timeless and elegant.

And in case you’re wondering, the four dishes that made it onto the cover are: 

• Poulet Vallée d’Auge (Cider-Braised Chicken with Apples and Mushrooms); a comforting one-pot recipe hailing from beautiful Normandy, featuring chicken leg quarters braised in apple cider and served in a creamy apple-and-mushroom studded sauce. 
• “Fougasse aux Olives Noires et aux Tomates Séchées” (Black Olive and Sundried Tomato Fougasse); a famous Provençal bread that is the star of market stalls all over France.   
• Crespéou Provençal (Provençal Layered Omelette); a succulent savory cake made of several omelettes stacked together in a free-form tower of alternating colors and vibrant flavors. Perfect for alfresco eating, in true Provençal fashion.
• Choucroute Garnie Alsacienne (Alsatian Pork and Sauerkraut Stew); the mastodon of Alsatian Cuisine! A fragrant feast of pork and sauerkraut stewed in white wine. One of my favorite stick-to-your-ribs comforting dishes that’s perfect for cold days.

I feel these four pictures perfectly capture the essence of the recipes you’ll find in this book: rustic, comforting, regional, yet easy and full of flavors! 

You can find more details on the book on this page, along with the first praises & reviews! 

The book will officially release on October 8th, 2019, everywhere books are sold. And you can now pre-order it in advance, before it hits the stores! As we get closer to the publishing date, I will continue unveiling more bits and anecdotes on the book… so stay tuned!

Cover and book design by Rosie Stewart for Page Street Publishing Co.
Photography by Audrey Le Goff and Karly Schaefer

Where to pre-order the book: 

& wherever books are sold! 

The post Cover Reveal: Rustic French Cooking Made Easy appeared first on Pardon Your French.

The last few months have been utterly exciting, starting from being approached by Page Street Publishing (while I was visiting my home in France last Spring), discussing concept ideas and recipes with my editor (who is passionate about French food, and even lived a year in Normandy herself! I love that!) to finally, signing the book deal this Summer (on the same day we adopted our puppy!).

I won’t tell you everything just yet, but you’ll likely guess that my cookbook will be based on rustic, regional French cuisine. It will be filled with delicious, easy recipes from the French countryside. Regional French cuisine has so much to offer…And I am so excited to get a chance to introduce it to you. Get ready for a basket full of rustic, essential, homey, scrumptious regional recipes that I’ll make easy for you to recreate in your own kitchen (wherever you live!).

More details coming soon, stay tuned… 

The post I am writing a cookbook! appeared first on Pardon Your French.

This double-chocolate mashed potato brioche recipe from the Wickaninnish Cookbook is a quick and nifty version that is deliciously creamy, chocolatey and gluten-free. And it’s just one of the many exquisite recipes you’ll find in this book …

The Inn and the Book

The Wickaninnish Cookbook celebrates the sensational cuisine from The Pointe Restaurant’s chefs, operating at the Wickaninnish Inn (nicknamed “The Wick”), an award winning Relais & Chateaux property in Tofino, British Columbia, Canada. To celebrate the release of their book last May, Appetite by Random House was so kind as to send me a copy, offering a magical glimpse into West Coast beauty and its food-heaven.

With beautiful Vancouver Island as a backdrop, the book boasts breathtaking photos of the ancient forests of Tofino, of the majestic Pacific Ocean and of dreamy beach-front dining experiences. I have never had a chance of visiting Tofino (yet!) but this book surely inspires me to do so.

But I think one of the reasons this book truly spoke to me, is how the food it depicts looks so reminiscent of Brittany-style cooking, with a big focus on ocean-to-table dining. I found a lot of recipes reminding me of dishes I like to enjoy at home: mussels and clams, seared scallops and buttered leeks, corn and clam chowder, etc. Funny how, on opposite sides of the globe, two different oceans can provide such similar inspiration to local chefs.

I really appreciate the attention to styling and plating for the photos in this book, which I like to think reflects the same level of care the Inn’s chefs have for their cooking. The chefs seem to have a delicate eye for making their products shine, in true respect for their local environment. Canadian cuisine is still an underdog on the world scene, but I sure hope that cookbooks like this one will bring more light on the local chefs, talents and great produce that makes Canadian cuisine so innovative.  

Lastly, I couldn’t help myself but look for some of the French-inspired recipes in the book, which includes a Nicoise-Style Salad, a Kale Tapenade and a Raspberry Sabayon – three recipes that I already know will come to life in my kitchen this Summer.

But for now, I would like to share with you the recipe of this exquisite Double-Chocolate Mashed-Potato Brioche…

The Recipe

Being a huge brioche fan, I was immediately drawn towards this Double-Chocolate Mashed-Potato Brioche recipe. I loved the idea that it is gluten-free (with mashed-potato and ground almond, instead of flour) and of course, it being “richly chocolatey”.

These small brioches are whipped up in less than 15 minutes (no resting time!) and baked in muffin tins. The recipe was definitely different and breezier from the traditional French-style brioches that I am used to making (which usually requires a lot of kneading and resting time).

The taste of the mashed-potato is really not noticeable; this quirky ingredient (for a brioche, that is) is used here to provide a gluten-free base and a delectable creamy texture.

Instead of breakfast, the chef suggests to serve the small brioches for dessert with a chocolate sauce and fresh berries. And since we’re in the midst of strawberry season here, strawberries it had to be! 

Overall, this recipe was a big hit, and I can’t wait to make more recipes from this exquisite book.

Book’s Recipe Introduction

Chef Butters’s richly chocolatey dessert keeps the gluten-free guests happy, while the rest won’t even notice the difference. He suggests serving this with warm chocolate sauce, raspberry compote, and raspberry sorbet, but you can also top it with fresh raspberries and whipped cream.

Double-Chocolate Mashed Potato Brioche

Print Recipe

Nutrition facts: 200 calories 20 grams fat

Rating: 4.7/5

( 3 voted )

Ingredients

5 oz (150 g) bittersweet chocolate, chopped
1 Tbsp (4 g) instant coffee granules
3 Tbsp (45 mL) amaretto
½ cup (115 g) butter
4 eggs, room  temperature, separated
½ cup (100 g) sugar
1 cup (250 mL) mashed potatoes, preferably russet, drained and fairly dry
½ cup (50 g) finely ground almonds
Pinch of salt
½ cup (85 g) chocolate chips, preferably milk chocolate
Optional toppings: chocolate sauce, raspberry compote or coulis, fresh raspberries, whipped cream, raspberry sorbet

Instructions

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Grease eight small brioche moulds or six large muffin cups.

In a heatproof bowl set over a double boiler, melt the bittersweet chocolate, coffee, amaretto, and butter. Cool for a minute or two.

In a separate bowl, beat the egg yolks with the sugar until thick and creamy. Add the melted chocolate mixture to the yolk mixture and stir. Add the mashed potatoes and ground almonds and stir until thoroughly combined.

In an immaculately clean mixing bowl, beat the egg whites until stiff, then fold into the chocolate and potato mixture. Gently fold in the salt and chocolate chips.

Spoon into the brioche moulds or muffin cups and place in the oven. Bake for approximately 30 minutes or until a wooden skewer inserted in the centre comes out clean. Let cool for 15 minutes before removing from the moulds.

Serve alongside chocolate or raspberry sauce, fresh berries, and whipped cream or if you prefer, raspberry sorbet or chocolate ice cream.

Excerpted from The Wickaninnish Cookbook: Rustic Elegance on Nature’s Edge by The Wickaninnish Inn. Copyright © 2018 Wickaninnish Inn. Published by Appetite by Random House®, a division of Penguin Random House Canada Limited. Reproduced by arrangement with the Publisher. All rights reserved.

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