Mastering the Art

Well I finally did it. I finally bought my own copy of Mastering the Art of French Cooking. I had been hoping to find an old copy in a used book store but after searching the last few years and coming up empty handed I decided to break down and get my own copy. I will continue to search for an older version and will buy it just for collectors sake but I am excited to begin making my own food memories with my copy starting now. One thing I love about this cookbook is that you have a forward from Julia the gives the story of how the cookbook came to life. Each recipe has wine pairing recommendations and also suggestions on what sides would pair well with an entree recipe.

My first recipes attempted were the Roast Chicken and Garlic Mashed Potatoes. Amazing!  The chicken took a bit longer to cook than was described in the recipe guidelines but it was possibly the juiciest chicken I have ever cooked. The seasoning was just salt and butter. I put a dash of pepper on at the last minute for my pepper loving other-half but that was my only variation. I had never cooked a chicken on its side but I am convinced this is the reason the breast meat was delectably juicy. As a lover of dark meat this was pleasant surprise.

The Potatoes were also a hit. Garlicky without being overwhelming. Since it is just the two of us I only made half the recipe so only used one head of garlic as opposed to two. I found it so interesting that you made a rue of sorts from the garlic and butter then added that to the potatoes after mashing. The were creamy and silky goodness. Definitely a new recipe to keep in the lineup.

Now to master the art of food photography! That is one on 2015 goals, to take some more photography classes to go along with all the wonderful camera equipment my honey keeps getting me! :) These photos were taken with my Christmas Tamron SP AF60mm lens and my Cannon Rebel.

Pin It