Blog
At Home With Patricia Wells - Cooking classes in Paris and Provence, Cookbooks and Restaurant Reviews.
Patricia Wells Visits Google's San Francisco Office To Present Her Book "Salad As A Meal". This Event Took Place On April 25, 2011, As Part Of The Health@Google Series
click to see the video (39:58)
or http://youtu.be/1EkYP5oCmZk (YouTube page)
Nancy Oakes is one of my favorite chefs, for a meal at her always reliable, always lively restaurant Boulevard in San Francisco is forever memorable. She pleases with ease and flair, and with every bite you feel as though a careful decision has been made to create the perfect pairing of each ingredient. The other evening we feasted on delicate and sweet Royal Sweet Sea Scallops teamed up with spring radishes, toasted hazelnuts, and house pancetta. One of the most remarkable tastes of the meal came with the chewy Monterrey Red Abalone accompanied by a lobster hollandaise and the most amazing, delicate, and full-flavored fried green tomatoes (I want the recipe!) For a real treasure of a dish, try the House Made Ricotta and Nettle Tortelloni (photo) served with a giant mushroom slice, as dense and flavorful as any meat.
Boulevard, 1 Mission Street, San Francisco 94105. Tel 415 543 6084.
Yesterday I had the good fortune to speak and sign copies of all my books at the fabulous Omnivore Books on Food (3885A Cesar Chavez, at Church Street) in San Francisco. The cozy store (a former butcher's shop) is like a candy store for cookbook lovers, loaded with old books, new books, books on every subject, ranging from building chicken coops to signed original copies from authors all over. Owner Celia Sach runs a cool Signed Cookbook Club, where members receive four signed cookbooks each year. Each book is a surprise, although members can note preferences, such as baking, meat, vegetables, food history. And sounds like a great gift! $160 per year. More information at
I just arrived on the ferry from Seattle, and am bathing in the sunshine and pristine environment of Orcas Island, a land of rugged peaks and craggy shores cradling oyster beds, organic lamb, pork, poultry, and produce. We have already enjoyed the local mussels and clams and look forward to more tonight, at a dinner for Salad As A Meal. But there's more! My good friend and local food expert Jeffrey Bergman (pictured right) will join with host John Trumbull (pictured left) at the warming Rose's Bakery and Cafe from May 15 to 18 for a fabulous hand's on Culinary Workshop. Jeffrey will take a select 10 students on a local tour, as guests gather around the farm table for feasts, caravan to Judd Cove for an oyster class and picnic-style feast on the beach. There will be hand's on classes with local produce, tours of gardens and farms, and of course a wine tasting. Alas, I will be back in France then, but you can join in and profit from Jeffrey's vast expertise and enthusiasm for food, wine, and the Seattle area. To sign up, contact Jeffrey at quincetree@comcast.net or phone him at 206 721 2592.
A fun, friendly lunch full of food talk with Parisian food-loving colleagues today, to celebrate Salad As A Meal. On the guest list, David Lebovitz, Alec Lobrano, Clotilde Dusoulier, Meg Zimbeck, Susan Herrmann, Emily Buchanan. On the menu:
Cumin Chips, Hummous, Home-Cured Olives
(p 263; p 10)
Cilantro-Flecked Heirloom Tomato Soup
(p 29)
Crab Salad with Lime and Avocado
(P 124)
Chicken Salad with Green Beans, Tahini-Yogurt Dressing and Cilantro
(p 187)
Poached Turkey Breast Salad with Lemon, Capers, Cornichons, and Mint
(207)
Ham and Cheese Bread
(p 266)
Raspberry Yogurt Sorbet
Red Fruit Soup
(from the upcoming At Home with Patricia Wells)
On the wine list:
Champagne Inflorescence Blanc de Noirs
Domaine Ostertag Riesling 2009 "Vignoble d'E"
Martinelle Ventoux 2008
Can't wait until we all get together again, and often!
I am delighted to announce the birth of my latest book, Salad As A Meal! To celebrate, I am sharing a favorite recipe from the book, a lightened and updated version of the popular Alsatian Onion and Bacon Tart, known as Flammekuchen. While I prepare this with homemade bread or pizza dough, use your favorite recipe or purchased pizza dough.
Alsatian Onion and Bacon Tart: Flammekuchen
This is a memory lane recipe for me: when researching The Food Lover’s Guide to France in the early 1980’s, we found this fragrant onion and bacon tart on the menu everywhere in Alsace, and since then it has become a favorite bread tart. This is a lightened version, prepared with fromage blanc or with yogurt, rather than a richer heavy cream or crème fraîche. Likewise, the onions are steamed rather than cooked in fat, making for an ethereally light tart. Serve it with a simple green salad as a meal, with a glass of chilled Riesling.
Equipment: A baking stone; a steamer; a wooden pizza peel; a metal pizza peel or large metal spatula.
8 ounces large white onions, peeled and cut crosswise into 1/8-inch-thick rounds
4 ounces thinly sliced pancetta or bacon, cut into thin matchsticks
1/2 cup (150 g) whole milk Greek-style yogurt or fromage blanc
1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Flour and polenta for dusting
Coarse, freshly ground black pepper
1 package pizza dough for a 12-inch pizza , shaped into a ball
One 12-inch tart
Wine suggestion: A young, fresh dry Alsatian Riesling is in order here: Try one from the reputable firms of Ostertag or Zind-Humbrecht, crisp, dry, smoky wines with a saline touch of chalky minerality, an even match for the creamy onion and pancetta mixture offset with a hit of black pepper.
Note: If you don’t have a baking stone and a wooden peel, simply sprinkle the polenta on a baking sheet, place the round of dough on top, assemble the tart, and bake on the baking sheet.
Celebrity Chef Chat | Living the foodie dream - Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
http://www.jsonline.com/features/food/119219004.html
For The Perfect Salad, Toss Thirty-Three Times - epicurious.com
by Siobhan Adcock
http://www.epicurious.com/articlesguides/blogs/editor/2011/04/for-the-perfect-salad-toss-thirty-three-times.html
Salad: From Side Dish to Main Course - foodandwine.com
To mark tomorrow's release of Salad as a Meal, the new cookbook by prominent food writer Patricia Wells, we offer our own favorite main-dish salads:
http://e.amexpub.com/amex40/wmws/APNL/1301900679565_788/w319134.php?custcode=APNL&bid=34789656&pbid_=34789656&pemail=cahilldot%40
aol%2Ecom&xid=DISH032811
ANNOUNCING OUR SALAD AS A MEAL BLOGGERS! thesecretingredientblog.com
http://thesecretingredientblog.com/2011/03/08/announcing-our-salad-as-a-meal-bloggers/
A recent visit to Jean-Louis Nomicos’s new Les Tablettes left me feeling sated but not satisfied. In the space that formerly housed Joel Robuchon’s La Table du Robuchon, the completely redecorated room – designed to make you feel as though you are in a woven market basket – a lot is left to be desired. The 58-euro lunch menu, which includes wine, is not badly priced and I would have felt it was a bargain if the food had sparkled. It didn’t. A daurade tartare paired with shiso and mango seemed to have no point and was simply bland. A langoustine broth with a tiny mound of minced langoustines seemed a waste. The greatest pleasure in these delectable sea creatures is in the airy texture, totally lost here. I did love the gorgeous lamb shoulder, which cut like butter and was bathed in a sparkling sauce laced with spice (photo). A cheese course of fresh goat cheese, Parmesan and apple just made no sense, and a dessert of apple compote is not my idea of dessert. I think the chef is not aware of what incredible competition he has these days in Paris. Time to go back to the drawing board.
LES TABLETTES, 16, rue Bugeaud, Paris 16. Tel: +33 (0)1 56 28 16 16. Métro: Victor Hugo. 58-euro lunch menu. Other menus at 80, 120, and 150 euros. Open daily. www.lestablettesjeanlouisnomicos.com
A memorable, rollicking, and boisterous lunch today with actress and Parisian Olivia de Havilland (age 94 and loving every moment of life) enjoying champagne, briny oysters from Utah Beach, and a few sips of Pouilly Fumé from the Loire Valley. We talked of present moments, old times, and times to come, enjoying it all with my 89-year-old friend Maggie Shapiro and the young Jeannie Fellowes. In the background is Stéphane, who comes in from Normandy each weekend with his oysters. Next weekend is the last weekend for oysters at our favorite oyster spot, Brassierie Aux PTT, 54 rue Cler, Paris 7. +33 1 45 51 94 96. Métro: Ecole-Militaire (line 8).
I am excited to announce the beginning of the Salad As A Meal Challenge! My new book Salad As A Meal will be published April 5, and my wonderful publisher William Morrow has organized a fabulous month long challenge, offering free copies of the cookbook for those who cook at least three Salad As A Meal recipes a week for four weeks and blog about their experience. I’ll be following your comments, and look forward to every last bite!
Click here to get the all the details, including how to enter, program guidelines, and blogger benefits.
www.thesecretingredientblog.com/four-weeks-of-salad-as-a-meal-challenge/
I confess that I could easily lunch or dine at the wine bar/restaurant Fish La Boissonerie once a week, and would be totally happy just sipping some delicious wine (our own Clos Chanteduc Cotes du Rhone is on the list now!) and eating the warm and golden brick oven bread from Cosi, just across the street. The friendly Anglophone spot reminds me of the coffee shop from Friends, where you always run into someone you know and always feel at home. Sunday’s lunch was no exception, with the charming Colombian Angela Jaramitto taking orders and delivering fresh bread every few minutes or so (photo). I always love the simple arugula, date and Parmesan salad, as well as the daurade on a welcoming bed of poached vegetables, including leeks, tomatoes, potatoes, and bits of citrus. Yesterday’s wine was a delight, the Macon-Villages Quintaine 2009, 100% Chardonnay from Pierette and Michel Guillemot, a white with a surprising amount of acidity and vigor. (And, no, the 2011 Gault-Millau guide is dead wrong: Barack Obama did NOT eat here!)
FISH LA BOISSONERIE, 69, rue de Seine, Paris 6. Telephone +33 1 43 54 34 69. Métro : Mabillon/Odéon.
April 13: NEW YORK CITY
2:30 to 4 PM James Beard Foundation—talk & signing
Chelsea Markets, 9th Ave and West 16th St
7 PM French Institute Alliance Française
Conversation with Ina Garten
Demo, book signing
22 E 60th St
Melissa Ceria, (646) 388-6628
April 14: NEW YORK AREA
9 AM Hour NBC-TV Today Show
12:15 PM “Eat Drink with Lucinda Scala Quinn”—Live
Martha Stewart Living, Sirius XM Satellite Radio
7:30PM New Canaan Library—signing
151 Main Street / New Canaan, CT
*RSVP programs@newcanaanlibrary.orgor (203) 594-5040
April 15: NEW YORK CITY
7PM Borders in Time Warner Center—signing
10 Columbus Circle
April 16: NEW YORK REGION
3PM Books & Greetings—signing
271 Livingston St, Northvale, NJ
Kenny Salfin, (201) 784-2665, kennys1407@aol.com
April 17: CHICAGO
3 to 5 PM The Spice House—signing
1512 North Wells St/ Chicago, IL
Patty Erd, (312) 274-0378
April 18: MILWAUKEE
12 to 2PM Bartolotta’s Restaurants—Luncheon, signing
Bacchus, 925 E Wells / Milwaukee, WI
John Wise, (414) 765-1166
RSVP (414) 765-1166;
$95/ includes lunch, wine. book
April 19: CHICAGO REGION
12 to 3 PM Froggy’s French Café—Luncheon, signing
306 Green Bay Rd Highwood, IL
Lake Forest Book Store
Susan Boucher, (847) 234-4420
(847) 234-4420; $35/ for lunch
April 20: SEATTLE
Morning TV: KING-TV “New Day Northwest”
Or KCPQ-TV “Q-13 Fox News This Morning”
Or “KING 5 Morning News” on KONG-TV
12 to 2 PM The Walrus and the Carpenter—Lunch, signing
4743 Ballard Avenue NW / Seattle, Washington 98107
Renee Erickson, (206) 395-9227
(206) 395-9227; $75 all-inclusive
4 PM KOMO-TV “KOMO First News at 4”
6:30PM Boat Street—Dinner and book signing
3131 Western Ave #301 / Seattle, WA
Renee Erickson, (206) 395-9227
(206) 632-4602 $100, all-inclusive
April 21: SEATTLE
6:30PM Rose’s Bakery and Café—Dinner, signing
382 Prune Alley Orcas Island, WA
(360) 376-5805
April 22: SEATTLE
1PM Press & blogger lunch at Jeffrey Bergman’s home
4611 51st Av South Seattle, WA
April 23: SAN FRANCISCO
10:30AM KGO-AM “Gene Burns Show”—Live
12 to 2 PM Pasta Shop—signing
1786 Fourth Street / Berkeley, CA
Roberta Klugman, (510) 655-7790
3PM Omnivore Books on Food—signing
3885A Cesar Chavez St San Francisco, CA
(415) 282-4712
April 25: SAN FRANCISCO
12 to 1PM Google—Lunch, talk & signing
345 Spear Street – 4th Floor in San Francisco
Lindsay Dahms lindsayd@google.com
7PM Books, Inc. (Marina Store)— signing
2251 Chestnut St San Francisco
(415) 931-3633
April 26: SAN FRANCISCO
6:30PM Left Bank Restaurant dinner
507 Magnolia Avenue / Larkspur, CA
(415) 927-3331
Contact: Marguerita Castanera, mordie@vom.com
Friday, April 29: GREENSBORO
7 pm Book Signing Barnes & Noble Greensboro
May 1 and 2: BLACKBERRY FARM
NEAR KNOXVILLE, TN
Hand’s on cooking class and special meals
Kelley Clark Harris kelley@blackberryfarm.com.
May 3: RALEIGH
7PM Regulator Bookshop—Talk, signing
720 Ninth St/ Durham, NC
Tom Campbell (919) 286-2700
May 4: RALEIGH
7:30PM Quail Ridge Books—signing
3522 Wade Ave / Raleigh, NC
Rene Martin, (919) 828-7912
May 5: RALEIGH
6PM A Southern Season—$35 Dinner, signing
201 S. Estes Drive / Chapel Hill, NC
www.southernseason.com 877 929 7133
Pascal Barbot is in top form, offering us food that is light, laced with herbs and spices, and an avalanche of varied citrus flavors. I left his 12-course lunch with pep in my step and a palate coated with extraordinary taste memories. How to decide best bite of the meal? The demitasse-sized condiment of spinach and pequillo peppers? The baby ravioli filled with a tangy bite of cedrat or citron? The chili pepper sorbet brilliantly paired with lemongrass and ginger? Or the almost too pretty to eat lemon meringue sablé? (photo). Then there is the warm and golden brioche spread with a fragrant, salty butter of rosemary and lemon. And of course the chestnut honey madeleines. For grand dining, the 110 euro lunch menu is one the city’s best buys. Pascal Barbot and partner Christophe Rohat have always done it their way, discreetly, professionally, with a smile. And if lucky enough to secure a table in this tiny restaurant, we are the lucky recipients of their talents.
L’ASTRANCE , 4, rue Beethoven, Paris 16. Tel: +33 1 40 50 84 40.Métro: Passy. Open Tuesday through Friday. Closed Saturday, Sunday, and Monday.
We just finished two incredible all-truffle days in Provence. Today we visited the Richerenches truffle market (and tasted novel and delectable fast food -- baby pancakes prepared on the spot, filled with fresh black truffles, then topped with a pat of butter). Back at home for lunch I prepared one of my favorite dishes. The first-of-season Provençal green asparagus is in the market, and the season for fresh black truffles is nearing an end. I love braising the aspargus in olive oil, flavored with rosemary and bay leaves, then topping the asparagus with a poached egg, truffles, and a slice of coppa. As it turns out, the poached egg in the photograph was the EIGHTH double-yolk egg in a row that I had cracked, from our incredible cheese supplier Josiane Déal, a Meilleur Ouvrier de France (MOF) in Vaison-la-Romaine. I don't know about you, but I always consider double-yolk eggs a sign of good luck, so hopefully I'll have eight full days of good fortune.
Gontran Cherrier (can that be his real name?) is a wild man. His breads are like halloween costumes: arugula green, paprika orange, squid ink black. And he doesn't stop there, infusing breads with flavors of cumin and carraway; golden curry powder; even black miso. I love him, his shop, his ambition, his sense of humor. His bad boy good looks make him a stand-in for Brad Pitt. But the proof is in the tasting, and I am happy that his tidy little shop on the charming Rue Caulaincourt can be reached nonstop on my Métro line, for it's easy enough to keep my kitchen stocked with a fresh loaf of his irresistible rye bread tinged with a salty touch of red miso. Go for breakfast, sit at the windowside counters, and enjoy!
Gontran Cherrier, 22, rue Caulaincourt, Paris 18. Tel: +33 1 46 06 82 66. Metro: Lamark-Caulaincourt. Open 7:30 am to 8:30 pm Monday through Saturday, 7:30 am to 7 pm Sunday. Closed Wednesday. http://www.gontrancherrierboulanger.com/
We’ve had a tremendous amount of excitement about Salad As A Meal. Enthusiasm on blogs and in publications has been fantastic! Cooks attacking the Four Weeks of Salad As A Meal Challenge have raved about the Crab Salad with Lime and Avocado (p 124) The BLT Tartine (p 83), My Cobb Salad (p 57), the Zucchini Carpaccio with Avocado, Pistachios, and Pistachio Oil (p 114), and of course the recipe that seems to be everyone’s favorite in this cookbook, the Poached Turkey Breast Salad with Lemon, Capers, Cornichons, and Mint (p 207). (During my current series of cooking classes in Paris, the moist, amazing turkey breast salad was named Best Taste of the Week three weeks in a row!) We’ve been featured in Food & Wine Magazine, a flurry of blogs, and many more mentions are on their way.
The newest book, or any of my others, would make idea gifts (think Mother’s Day!). I will be glad to send an autographed book plate for any of my books that you already have or plan to purchase for yourself or as gifts. Send requests, with your address, to asst@patriciawells.com
To order SALAD AS A MEAL
Modern Parisian bistros know no bounds these days. It's not possible that diners ate better in the “good old days.” Today food is fresher, unmasked, and more wholesome. The bright and lively Philou, home of Philippe Damas ( last seen at Square Trousseau) is a case in point. Damas offers old-time ingredients – like pig’s cheeks and calf’s liver – and serves them up with a simplicity and freshness that is thoroughly appealing. He pairs slow-cooked, moist and meaty pig’s cheeks (photo) with a tangy celery root boulangère (baked in a gratin dish with nothing but chicken stock until all the stock is absorbed) and cooks calf’s liver like a giant piece of meat, with a deeply seared outer crust and moist, rosy interior. I also loved the beautifully marinated fresh sardines, paired with a julienne of apples and set on a bed of warm, bathed potatoes. The choice of wine is excellent : Try the superb 2006 Côtes du Rhone, Vieille Julienne, so rich and powerful it could easily pass as a Châteauneuf du Pape. The tiny place off the Canal Saint Martin is super loud, super fun, and a super bargain.
Philou, 12, Avenue Richerand, Paris 10. Tel: +33 1 42 38 00 13. Métro: Jacques Bonsergent. Closed Sunday and Monday. 25 euro menu.
There seems to be no end to “outer borough” bargain-priced dining spots and La Table d’Eugène in the 18th arrondissement is surely one to add to the list. Chef-owner Geoffroy Maillard has his finger on it all: a lovely varied menu that makes you want to try everything; service that is as efficient as it can be even when the tiny dining room is packed -- as it always is; and a knack for beautiful food prepared with top-rate ingredients. Lunch choices might include a stunning millefeuille-like dorade tartare stacked between thin slices of daikon and topped with an herb garden salad (photo); an ultra-fresh portion of cod topped with thin slices of Pata Negra ham and a vinaigrette of pequillo peppers and chives, teamed up with a brilliantly devised (though sadly overcooked) watercress risotto; and a soothing seven-hour gigot paired with the freshest of brilliant carrots. There’s a nice selection of wines by the glass, including the always reliable Jurançon sec Cuvèe Marie from the southwest. Desserts are spectacular, including a chocolate “pearl” melted at the table with a drizzle of hot chocolate seasoned judiciously with Tasmanian peppercorns; and a pineapple “carpaccio” set on a crunchy chocolate and citron biscuit accompanied by a super-rich yogurt ice cream. Prices can vary from 18 euros for lunch to custom-designed “skies the limit” menus for two to twenty.
LA TABLE D’EUGENE, 18, rue Eugène Sue, Paris 18. Tel: +33 1 42 55 61 64. Metro: Marcadet-Poissoneries and Jules Joffrin. Closed Sunday and Monday. Lunch menus at 18, 25 and 35 €. 30 € and up at dinner.
No, West Country Girl is not a gas station dive along America’s Route 66. The West Country refers to Brittany in the west of France, where one finds some of the most delicious galettes, classic buckwheat crêpes filled with ham, cheese, and an egg. Galettes can be leaden or ethereal, and here in this small, 50’s-style diner they are truly outstanding -- parchment-paper thin and golden. (The selection is huge, including mimolette and spinach; Camembert and bacon; goat cheese and spinach; bacon and mushrooms.) Dessert offerings might include a memorable sweet crêpe topped with meltingly delicious salted caramel. Go for what’s on the plate and the charming service. The floors are bare concrete, walls distressed plaster, chairs colorful castoffs from the 1950’s. Lunch will set you back around 9 to 12 euros. Oysters are also one the menu later in the week.
West Country Girl, 6, Passage Saint-Ambroise, Paris 11. Tel: +33 1 47 00 72 54. Métro: Saint-Maur or Parmentier. Open lunch and dinner Wednesday through Saturday. Tuesday lunch only. Closed Sunday and Monday.
Patricia Wells – journalist, author, and cooking teacher – is an American who has lived in Paris since 1980. She is the author of 13 books, including The French Kitchen Cookbook, Simply Truffles, Vegetable Harvest, We've Always Had Paris...and Provence, Bistro Cooking, Simply French, and Trattoria. Her first book, The Food Lover’s Guide to Paris, was a landmark work that "cracked the code" to the Paris food world. (The Food Lovers Guide iPhone app is available from the iTunes store, and an all new version of the print edition is scheduled for March publication.) She is the only woman and only foreigner to serve as restaurant critic of a major French publication, the newsweekly L’Express. From 1980 to 2007 she served as restaurant critic for the International Herald Tribune. Previously, she was a writer and editor for The Washington Post and The New York Times.
She is the recipient of numerous awards, including the Chevalier de l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres for her contributions to French culture, and received an honorary doctorate from Muhlenberg College in 2013 and another in gastronomic journalism from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee in 2007. Several of her books have received the James Beard and IACP awards, and most of them have been translated into several languages. At certain times of the year, she conducts week-long cooking classes both in her cooking studio in Paris and at her farmhouse in Provence. She is married to Walter Wells, retired executive editor of the International Herald Tribune and now her enthusiastic sous-chef.
