| |
 Events
& Classes
|
|
|
Weekly
Email
|
|
|
Press
|
|
Private
Talks & Events
|
|
|
Let
Us Hear From You
|
|
Links
We Like
|
|
|
French Affaires French Cookbook Club
“American Women Cooking in France”
2011
French Affaires is introducing a new twist on the classic book club idea with our ‘French Cookbook Club.’ Every other month, we will read and cook our way as a group through a specially chosen French-themed cookbook. We will gather for a seated dinner to taste our recipes and enjoy an evening of great French cuisine, wines and food conversation. It will be a unique chance to get to know French cookbooks already in your library or to add to your cookbook collection as the French Cookbook Club continues. And of course, it will be a festive occasion to make friends with other gourmets interested in French cuisine and l’art de vivre.
Our French Cookbook Club theme this year is “American Women Cooking in France.” With chefs like Patricia Wells, Ina Garten, Julia Child, and Susan Herrmann Loomis as our muses, we’ll cook our way through the various regions of France. Provence, Burgundy, Normandy, Paris and more will be on our culinary itinerary. Sign up now as spaces are limited!
Here’s how the French Affaires French Cookbook Club works:
- Sign up for that month's French Affaires French Cookbook Club gathering
- Read through our month's cookbook selection and choose a recipe that you would like to make
- Prepare your recipe and bring it to our French Cookbook Club evening along with your comments on the recipe-making process - was it easy? was it challenging? what aspect of French cooking did you appreciate in this recipe? would you make this recipe again?
- Over apéritifs, enjoy a brief overview of the French cookbook and its author by French Affaires host Elizabeth New Seitz. Our cookbook introduction will be followed by a five-course seated dinner in a beautiful home of the various dishes prepared by fellow French Cookbook club guests accompanied by French wines.
Each French Cookbook Club gathering is limited to 14 participants. To ensure a well-rounded French gourmet experience, each cookbook club guest is asked choose one recipe from one of the following cookbook categories: two starters, two salads, one soup, two vegetables, three main dishes, and two desserts. And in case there are some among us who love French food but don’t cook, two guests can choose to bring a table centerpiece for the dining tables in keeping with the cookbook’s theme.
 Tuesday, February 22 – The Provence Cookbook by Patricia Wells
This former restaurant critic for the International Herald Tribune in Paris has her own cooking school in Paris and also at her country home in Provence. Patricia Wells has written numerous cookbooks on French cooking complete with wonderful stories, references and resources. The Provence Cookbook brings the cuisine of the sunny south of France right to us.
Monday, April 18 and April 25 – Barefoot in Paris: Easy French Food You Can Make at Home by Ina Garten
Ina Garten of Barefoot Contessa fame combines great French food in an easy-to-prepare format in this cookbook focused on Paris. Every recipe exudes the spirit of classic French bistrot cooking—and also includes a fresh twist. Ina Garten accompanies all her recipes with a brief anecdote making this a wonderfully personal journey into French cuisine.
 Monday, June 13 – The French Chef Cookbook by Julia Child
Extraordinary chef Julia Child had her first meal on French soil in 1948 and quickly discovered her calling to master French cuisine and make it accessible to American cooks. This month’s French Cookbook Club selection The French Chef Cookbook includes the recipes from her celebrated television series The French Chef (available on DVD). As you cook your cookbook club recipe, you also can watch Julia’s demonstration for extra tips and insights—a special way to make this cookbook come alive!
 Monday, September 12 – Cooking at Home on Rue Tatin by Susan Herrmann Loomis
Ever since she went to France more than twenty years ago, Susan has been captivated by the way meals are a cherished experience in France. Today, she runs her own cooking school in Normandy and Paris called “On Rue Tatin” and is the author of numerous cookbooks. Cooking at Home on Rue Tatin takes us on a wonderful tour of French home cooking, both rustic and refined. Susan is a frequent guest chef on French Affaires gourmet trips to Paris—we’re delighted to feature her culinary expertise for this month’s French Cookbook Club gathering.
 Tuesday, October 25 – The Country Cooking of France by Anne Willan
British-born and U.S. citizen Anne Willan is the founder of the legendary French cooking school “La Varenne.” She began the school in Paris in the 1970’s, moved it to her chateau in Burgundy for many years and now teaches out of California. Her most recent cookbook, The Country Cookbook of France, is an ode to French regional cooking from all over France. Gorgeous photographs and rich details of country life in France make this a must for our French Cookbook Club journey.
 Tuesday, December 6 – The Cooking of Southwest France: Recipes from France’s Magnificent Rustic Cuisine by Paula Wolfert
Winter is the perfect time to explore the hearty cuisine of southwest France. Paula Wolfert’s classic cookbook The Cooking of Southwest France first appeared in 1983 and she has now updated it more than twenty years later. Paula also includes current wonderful mail-order sources for harder-to-find ingredients. Reading and cooking our way through this volume takes us on a rich culinary adventure to Bordeaux, Gascony, Périgord, and the Basque country.
| Dates: |
Feb 22, April 18, June 13, Aug 22, Oct 25, Dec 6 |
| Time: |
6:30 to 9:00pm |
| Location: |
Central Dallas Location |
 Registration:
The cost is $35 per person for the French Cookbook Club event and includes the French dinner, French wines, cookbook discussion and set-up. Please let Elizabeth New Seitz know your recipe selection by two weeks prior to the event so we can plan the seated dinner (category choices are available on a first come, first served basis). Make plans now to join us for this unique culinary excursion to France!
|
