A Year in France

A Year in France

A Year of Cooking in my Farmhouse

by Mimi Thorisson

Pick this book up at your own risk.  I'm serious, you will want to move to France immediately and recreate this fantasy.  This life of deliciousness where every meal and everyone is beautiful.  The photos are stunning, food porn  -- beautiful food, beautiful people. The recipes are organized by season, beginning with spring.

Are the recipes practical for the home cook?  Yes and no.  Depends who your supplier is.   Calves' Liver a la Bordelaise, Langoustines with Armagnac, Black Pig Pork Roast, Poussins, Quails, Squab, Spider Crabs.  It isn't easy.

The good news is there's plenty of inspiration to be found.  Aunt Francine's Fava Bean Soup, Roast Chicken with Creme Fraiche and Herbs.   Thorisson is half Chinese, half French, so towards the end of the book, she includes a little section devoted to Chinese New Year.   Happy Valley Wonton Soup is one of the six recipes lumped in at the end.  

"I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review."