Bookshelf: Tales of Traditional French Cooking

I know that many customers who appreciate our fine French antique furniture also enjoy French food and lifestyle. As the holidays are upon us, I thought you might like to see some recently published books about French cooking by American expats who are living the French lifestyle. They'll make great stocking stuffers for the Francophiles in your life. You could also pair a book with some antique or vintage kitchenware from our gallery!

In a French Kitchen: Tales and Traditions of Everyday Home Cooking in France

This is the latest book by Susan Loomis who is well-known for her earlier memoir On Rue Tatin: Living and Cooking in a French Town. Her new volume In a French Kitchen mixes 85 recipes with stories about the American author's friends and neighbors in her adopted town of Louviers in France.

She also shares lots of tips about cooking at home in true French style and without a lot of fuss. Recipes like Braised Asparagus with Herbs look like they are simple to prepare but very delicious. Chapters on French breakfast, dessert, cheese and bread are sure to make the mouth water!

My Paris Kitchen: Recipes and Stories

Mmm... just the dish on the cover makes me hungry and a copper pan is always so handsome to look at.

Food blogger David Lebovitz shares 100 French-inspired recipes that the author has gathered and created since moving to Paris more than a decade ago. The book is illustrated by photos of Paris and of the author's own kitchen. Although he does write and reinvent some of the classics of French cuisine, he also gives more unusual recipes to reflect the way modern Parisians eat today. For example, Dukkah-roasted cauliflower, salt cod fritters with tartar sauce, and an exotic wheat berry salad with veggies and pomegranate.

Picnic in Provence: A Memoir with Recipes

The author Elizabeth Bard is a New Yorker but she's lived in France long enough to write the popular book Lunch in Paris and now she's following up with Picnic in Provence. The memoir is about Elizabeth moving from Paris to Provence with her husband and their infant son. There, among the acres of lavender fields, they start their own artisanal ice cream shop with unusual flavors like honey & thyme, olive oil and saffron. As you can guess, the book has plenty of recipes inspired by the culture and countryside of Provence.

Now we are all hungry, aren't we? I can't think of any recipes to offer you like the French cooking described in these books, but if you want some good all-American recipes for the holidays, we shared some favorites in our post on Christmas Cookies and Franklin Nut Cake.  Bon appétit!