The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux

The Secret French Recipes of Sophie Valroux by Samantha Verant  352 pages

Sophie Valroux is a graduate of the Culinary Institute of America. She’s got the chops to work in a Michelin-starred restaurant.  When this story opens, the New York restaurant where, Cendrillon, is waiting to hear that they have been awarded a third Michelin star.

Tensions are running high in the kitchen. Eric, the chef de cuisine, and Sophie’s former lover, are not exactly having a lover’s spat, but Eric is hard on her, making her re-season the Executive Chef Dan O’Shea’s recipe for roasted potimarron, a chestnut-flavored squash, soup.

When the call comes, it isn’t the one they are expecting. Not only was Cendrillon not awarded a third start, but one was taken away.  Imagine the disappointment in that kitchen.

Eric accuses Sophie of sabotaging the restaurant; O’Shea has no choice but to let her go. Sophie is crushed. It has been her dream to be part of the one percent of female chefs running a Michelin-starred restaurant. Word spreads through the city’s restaurants. Sophie has no chance of ever working in New York again…unless of course, she takes Eric up on going to work for him in the new restaurant he is planning to open.  Sophie would rather be homeless than that.

Sophie licks her wounds by returning to France where her grandmother lives. The grandmother she was exceptionally close to whom she has hardly talked to, much less visited in thirteen years.  Grand-mere has suffered a stroke.

Sophie learns that Grand-mere has been busy in Sophie’s absence---opening two restaurants in “the simple family home…is now luxurious chateau.”  Two highly regarded and highly successful restaurants.  Although Sophie’s confidence has been shaken to her core, she learns that while life isn’t fair, good can come of every betrayal and disappointment.

I fell in love with the opening paragraph…so beautifully written that I read it three times to savor the imagery. This novel is about family secret, learning to dream again and family is this people that can always be depended upon, even when there is disagreement. There is also a secondary plot line of romance. Between food (complete with recipes) and romance, this is the perfect escape novel and a way to see France without leaving your favorite chair.

I was disappointed that author Verant used so many French words that I could not put into context, but they added authenticity to the story that I would experience if I was in France.

 The Secret French Recipes of Sophie receives 4 out of 5 stars in Julie’s world. 

 

Hotbox: Inside Catering, the Food World's Riskiest Business

Hotbox: Inside Catering, the Food World's Riskiest Business by Matt Lee,  Ted Lee  272 pages

Two brothers take the reader inside the real-life drama behind the curtains (a/k/a pipe-and-drape) of catered events (large and small).  In the world of catering, cooking conditions are often more like mobile army hospitals than restaurant kitchens and cooks need to know how to adjust things on the fly, making sure food is delicious and temperature-safe.  Stepping inside the catering business for four years, the Lee brothers worked for different chefs and learned things from the ground up.

I found this book to be interesting, especially in comparison to some of the memoirs from chefs that I have read. Catering is an entirely different kind of business, and I had no idea all of the things that can go into cooking for events. So, it was great to get an insider's view of the catering world from two authors who weren't just observing, but who were in there, sweating it out and cooking/running at top speed/improvising under supervision at these events.  Definitely a different spin on the usual chef memoir.

Heat: An Amateur's Adventures as Kitchen Slave

Heat: An Amateur's Adventures as Kitchen Slave, Line Cook, Pasta-Maker, and Apprentice to a Dante-Quoting Butcher in Tuscany by Bill Buford    336 pages

Author Bill Buford had thought of himself as a reasonably good cook, although he had always wondered how good of a cook he'd be if he worked in a kitchen. Conveniently, Buford became friends with famous chef Mario Batali, who offered him an opportunity to train in the kitchen of his restaurant, Babbo. Buford leapt at the chance, and this book documents his culinary adventures in Babbo's kitchen and beyond. Bufor describes what it's like to work in Batali's kitchen, but also travels to Italy and London, where he studies such things as the fine art of pasta preparation, as well as the art of butchery.

I had read this book years ago (it was published in 2006) but was reminded of it recently when I was reading an article about Mario Batali.  The article, which focused on complaints about Batali's behavior, mentioned that Buford wrote about Batali's behavior years ago.  Reading the book originally, I didn't think as much about some of it, although I felt that Mario was not only a bit over the top, but also that I didn't understand why Batali would tolerate certain kinds of behavior in his kitchen.  However, this time through the book, it is a little clearer on that last point: Batali probably tolerated behavior because he, himself, didn't think anything was wrong with engaging in this kind of behavior.  As a result of the recent news about Batali, reading the book was a completely different experience.

I did like reading about Buford's learning experiences, although I sometimes marveled at the fact that Buford was apparently wealthy enough to not only work in Babbo's kitchen, but also travel abroad several times.  That aside, it's an interesting book, although I felt that the adoration of Batali sometimes wore a bit thin, as did the extensive writing about butchery. But, that's just my take on it.

Simmer and Smoke: A Southern Tale of Grit and Spice

Simmer and Smoke: A Southern Tale of Grit and Spice by Peggy Lampman  380 pages

I hail from the South---Arkansas to be exact, and Southern Arkansas at that—and I’m always to drawn to stories that take place in that part of the U.S. And to make the pot even sweeter, it’s a story that evolves around food.

Lampman’s debut novel is the story of two women: Shelby Preston and Mallory Lakes. The story evolves over the course of one year,from December 20, 2010, to December 30, 2011.

Shelby is a young mother, living with her mother, with dreams of becoming a chef. Not only does she love to cook, but she knows that she can never make a good life in Coryville. Determined to make a better life for herself and her six-year-old daughter, Shelby takes the four-hour bus ride to Atlanta to apply for a job as a cook for in the downtown deli of Grasso’s, a supermarket chain.

Mallory Lake writes for the Life Style Section of one of Atlanta’s papers, The Sun. Like many newspapers in 2010, The Sun is facing declining advertising and readership. Rumor has it that the paper is about to close its print doors and go strictly digital. Not only does Mallory have to worry about losing her job, but she’s still trying to figure out why her lover unceremoniously dumped her without a hint of warning.

I enjoyed Simmer and Smoke. It’s a story of strong women who aren’t strong because it’s the cool thing to do. They are strong because they have no choice. It’s also a story of family---the one we’re stuck with and the one we choose to make. It’s a story of food. I wish the recipes hadn’t been regulated to the back of the book. The story would have been more effective if they had been listed in the text.  The plot was interesting and entertaining. For half the book, it was a page turner. For the other half, it bogged down.

I give Simmer and Smoke: A Southern Tale of Grit and Spice 3 out of 5 stars.