http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com collaborative book reviews about all things food and wine Fri, 16 Jul 2010 05:32:31 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.9.2 en hourly 1 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/6625_cuisine-du-temps-jacques-reymond-2010-au http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/6625_cuisine-du-temps-jacques-reymond-2010-au#comments Thu, 22 Apr 2010 07:23:54 +0000 Daniel Chan http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=6625 Jacques Reymond and his restaurant are institutions in Melbourne, Australia. Over the years, the French-born chef has gradually introduced Asian elements into his cuisine. In some respects, he is the other side of the coin to Sydney’s Tetsuya Wakuda, who gradually fused French methods into his Japanese cuisine. Cuisine du Temps is a book reflecting on Reymond’s career in the kitchen. Many recipes that people will recognise from his restaurant appear in this book, as do dishes that he learned during his time working in South America and the South Pacific. The recipes and photography speak for Reymond, but there’s a part of me that would have liked to read about the man himself and what motivates him.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/6625_cuisine-du-temps-jacques-reymond-2010-au/feed 1 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/5794_paco-torreblanca-2-paco-torreblanca-2006-es http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/5794_paco-torreblanca-2-paco-torreblanca-2006-es#comments Fri, 12 Mar 2010 12:54:01 +0000 Gfron1 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=5794 What if Mozart or Einstein handed you their notebook and said, “Here, go have fun.” Such a gift would be overwhelming in generosity as well as challenge. When Paco Torreblanca offers this gift in Paco Torreblanca 2, he adds, “Now let’s see what we can do together.” A serious, no-nonsense book for people who take pastry seriously, Paco Torreblanca 2 focuses on integrating natural ingredients into microcosmic eye candy.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/5794_paco-torreblanca-2-paco-torreblanca-2006-es/feed 0 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/5169_three-star-chef-gordon-ramsay-2007-uk http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/5169_three-star-chef-gordon-ramsay-2007-uk#comments Wed, 24 Feb 2010 13:16:34 +0000 Daniel Chan http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=5169 Once upon a time, the marking point of a chef’s success was the awarding of a Michelin star or equivalent. The professional recognition and a dining room full of satisfied diners was all that was needed to make your mark on the culinary landscape. But chefs and restaurants have now evolved to a stage where global brand recognition has become a part of the game. Cookbooks featuring the flagship restaurant are a part of that marketing strategy. Gordon Ramsay Royal Hospital Road is the flagship of Ramsay’s empire, and “Three Star Chef” is his homage to it. As you’d expect, it is a beautiful book that will draw attention whether you keep it in the kitchen or on the coffee table. The photography is of a high quality and the dishes presented are remarkable in terms of the skills behind them and their presentation. Given the time, skill, and ingredients, this is food that would impress at a dinner party. Ramsay’s words display his customary bluntness when discussing restaurant life in the first half of the book, but change to a more encouraging tone in the recipe section. Does this book, like the restaurant, stand alongside corresponding works by the likes of Thomas Keller, Heston Blumenthal, and Michel Bras? While the Ramsay book matches these others in terms of recipe content and production values, it falls short in that you never truly get a sense of what drives him, his food, and his restaurant. ]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/5169_three-star-chef-gordon-ramsay-2007-uk/feed 0 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/5232_momofuku-david-chang-2009-us http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/5232_momofuku-david-chang-2009-us#comments Sun, 24 Jan 2010 06:49:47 +0000 Mark Manguerra http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=5232 David Chang, owner of the famed New York restaurants Momofuku Noodle Bar, Ssäm Bar and Ko, chronicles his journey from noodle-eater to noodle-maker and guides us through more than 50 of his most popular recipes that showcase the fusion of modern technique and classic Asian comfort food. Throughout the book he gives us a peek into the creative process and the story behind each dish, citing his influences, failures, and inspirations. The recipes can be daunting and the flavors sometimes need tweaking, but ambitious home cooks should have little problem replicating or improving on the dishes, though the weak instructions and badly converted measurements might lead them astray. While there has been plenty of media focus on Chang's "bad-boy" image, he still comes across as approachable and self-deprecating at best, and at worst annoying and trying too hard, but never offensive. Fans of modern Asian cuisine and the Momofuku empire will find the book both entertaining and fascinating. [Editor's note: Don't miss our book giveaway too!]]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/5232_momofuku-david-chang-2009-us/feed 0 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/4199_white-heat-marco-pierre-white-2005-uk http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/4199_white-heat-marco-pierre-white-2005-uk#comments Thu, 05 Nov 2009 10:21:04 +0000 Daniel Chan http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=4199 Marco Pierre White’s publishers took advantage of his re-emergence on television in the mid-2000s by reprinting “White Heat”. First published in 1990, this book proved that the public had an interest in recipes that were not intended to be made in a home kitchen. “White Heat” has been a book sought by collectors, professionals and foodies since its original release. Justin North, the owner/chef of Sydney’s Becasse restaurant commented recently that “This changed the way I saw food. I was an apprentice in New Zealand and it gave me an insight to the manic life of a chef; it made me hungry for knowledge about Michelin chefs.” Its impact in terms of kitchen skills, as a source of inspiration for chefs and cooks, and on the design of cookbooks, is still being felt twenty years later. “White Heat” also set standards in other areas. The stark black and white photographs are so integral to the feel of the book that the photographer, Bob Carlos Clarke, received a prominent credit on the cover. The layout with its blocks of white space and oversized quotes by White owes more to cutting edge magazines like “The Face” than to the cookbooks of years gone by. Finally, there is the no-holds-barred commentary by White about the many aspects of the life of a chef. “White Heat” was an extraordinary book in its time, and it remains so today.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/4199_white-heat-marco-pierre-white-2005-uk/feed 2 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/4065_the-dessert-architect-robert-wemischner-2010-us http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/4065_the-dessert-architect-robert-wemischner-2010-us#comments Sun, 01 Nov 2009 08:29:29 +0000 Mark Manguerra http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=4065 The Dessert Architect gives plenty of inspiration for a student of pastry arts to create his or her own impressive creations through 50 creative recipes. It also provides a few guidelines in creating your own plated desserts and what factors must be put into consideration in a professional kitchen. However, the photography needs some improvement in showing off the desserts. Also, the lack of instructions for specific plating techniques and the exclusion of newer methods in plating and construction keep the book from becoming an authority on plating in the modern pastry chef's bookshelf.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/4065_the-dessert-architect-robert-wemischner-2010-us/feed 5 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/3414_grand-livre-de-cuisine-alain-ducasses-desserts-and-pastries-alain-ducasse-2009-fr http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/3414_grand-livre-de-cuisine-alain-ducasses-desserts-and-pastries-alain-ducasse-2009-fr#comments Tue, 13 Oct 2009 11:41:22 +0000 Gfron1 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=3414 In an era when pastry chefs are whisking unpronounceable ingredients into batters, creating neon floating effervescent micro cookie espumas, this collection of Alain Ducasse recipes anchors pastry artists with solid and glorious fundamentals. With little fuss or fanfare Ducasse Pastry Chef, Frédéric Robert, offers 250 fine-tuned dessert and pastry recipes that are a sure success. But this volume is not for everyone. A solid foundation in pastry arts is necessary. And that sparse, focused writing style is what I find most appealing. Reading three page recipes for cookies wears on my patience, and here, we find recipes that take lines, not pages, but they assume you know your basics.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/3414_grand-livre-de-cuisine-alain-ducasses-desserts-and-pastries-alain-ducasse-2009-fr/feed 0 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/3027_cake-chic-peggy-porschen-2009-uk http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/3027_cake-chic-peggy-porschen-2009-uk#comments Sun, 30 Aug 2009 12:08:55 +0000 Sarah http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=3027 In Cake Chic, London’s queen of couture cakes, Peggy Porschen, shares the secrets of her celebrated sugar designs. From cookies to miniature cakes, to stunning tiered creations, Porschen’s style is unrestrainedly chic and girly. Her unique style and enthusiasm are inspiring and will motivate home bakers to get busy in the kitchen, rolling fondant and piping royal icing. However, despite its casual, accessible tone, this book is aimed squarely at advanced bakers, with some discrepancies between the base recipes and decorating guides requiring careful and skilled adjustment and planning.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/3027_cake-chic-peggy-porschen-2009-uk/feed 0 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/1787_alinea-grant-achatz-2008-us http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/1787_alinea-grant-achatz-2008-us#comments Thu, 16 Jul 2009 14:20:25 +0000 Daniel Chan http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=1787 Along with Heston Blumenthal’s “The Big Fat Duck Cookbook” and Ferran Adria’s “A Day at elBulli”, Grant Achatz’s “Alinea” was one of three highly anticipated books on molecular gastronomy released in 2008. The merits of molecular gastronomy have been argued in many forums and over countless dinners. While Blumenthal’s book provides a strong case that there is substance behind the hype, Achatz’s book may provide ammunition for those who don’t support the culinary revolutionaries. The recipes in the book are visually stunning and the techniques can leave you in wide eyed awe, but there is a gaping hole in that there are too few words from Achatz about his creations. It is also noticeable that the most satisfying writing in the book was by other contributors. It is these weaknesses that left me disappointed in the Alinea cookbook. Remove the essays, especially the one by Jeffrey Steingarten, and you may feel that the emperor has no clothes.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/1787_alinea-grant-achatz-2008-us/feed 4 http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/1009_the-big-fat-duck-cookbook-heston-blumenthal-2008-uk-review http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/1009_the-big-fat-duck-cookbook-heston-blumenthal-2008-uk-review#comments Thu, 02 Jul 2009 12:24:18 +0000 Daniel Chan http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/?p=1009 It’s 43cm long, 33cm wide, 8cm thick, weighs about five kilograms, has 534 pages, and was one of the most anticipated cookbooks in 2008. From the silver embossed slipcase to the photography and artwork, the writing and the feel of the paper, it would be hard not to notice and admire the Big Fat Duck Cookbook on the shelves of a bookstore. On initial impressions, perhaps like the restaurant itself, the book appears to be an intimidating creature. Open it and you will be hit by Heston Blumenthal’s passion. Inside is the story of Blumenthal and his restaurant, the recipes and stories behind many of the dishes from the Fat Duck, and a series of essays explaining the science behind the food. Beyond the science, there are journeys into food history, philosophy, personal anecdotes, humour, and the sheer dumb luck that can trigger a great idea. It is a dizzying amount of information in one book. But for those who have read Blumenthal’s previous books, his newspaper columns, or seen his TV show will know that he has a gift for explaining complicated concepts in terms that the layman can understand.]]> http://www.thegastronomersbookshelf.com/1009_the-big-fat-duck-cookbook-heston-blumenthal-2008-uk-review/feed 1