Cook it Up! Barefoot in Paris

For the Cook it Up! Challenge I am selecting a cookbook randomly from my collection each month and trying to use it as much as possible during the month.
 August's cookbook was Barefoot in Paris which is a cookbook I use pretty often, so I challenged myself to make recipes from it I hadn't made before. 
They all turned out well. 

• I made Plum Raspberry Crumble to take to the lake for a weekend get-away. It was delicious, traveled well in parts and was gobbled up, including cold the next day by my brother-in-law. Took fruit and pre-measured flour/sugar and juice in containers and the crumble in a zip-top-bag and it worked great.
• We did a whole dinner from the book one night: my husband made the Lemon Chicken with Croutons, and I made Moroccan Couscous (which was awesome cold for lunch the next day). For dessert we made Mango Sorbet which was made much easier by using 2 bags of Goya frozen fruit pulp instead of cleaning and pureeing mangos. The sorbet will definitely be made again and I am adding a little curry powder next time.
• I made the Pear Clafouti which was like a custard with fruit in it. It was pretty easy to do and I might try it again with different fruit. 

There are still a lot of things I want to make from this book--including Avocado Grapefruit Salad which will happen as soon as the avocado is ripe--but it is time to focus on a new book for the new month.

September's book is The Best of American Beer & Food: Pairing & Cooking with Craft Beer by Lucy Saunders. We bought this book at a homebrewers' conference several years ago and am not sure we have used it at all. There are lots of yummy sounding recipes in it so I plan to pick out some recipes, make my shopping list, and head over to the beer store. 

This post is my September link for Cook it Up! and is also linked up with Weekend Cooking at Beth Fish Reads.

Cooking the Books Review

Barefoot in Paris: Easy French Food You Can Make at Home by Ina Garten; photographs by Quentin Bacon (NY: Clarkson Potter, 2004)

This is an absolutely beautiful book. The photos are plentiful and mouthwatering and there is a coffee-table-book feel to both the design and the construction of the book. Don't just look at it though -- it is full of excellent, delicious recipes. Garten's friendly, casual tone helps mitigate the intimidation factor of things like souffles and hollandaise sauce. Mixed in with the recipes are thoughts and tips and several short essays on topics like French table settings, flowers, and cheese and a list of places to shop if you are lucky enough to get to Paris.

While I wouldn't describe this as an absolute beginner's cookbook it is very approachable and the directions are clear and easy to follow. The Lentil Sausage Soup (page 90) has become one of my go-to-recipes and the pissaladiere (provencal pizza) would be if I could get my husband to eat anchovies.

I highly recommend this book to anyone looking for an approachable introduction to cooking French food.