Product Description

Capturing the gastronomic spirit of French bistro cooking with an unusual vegetarian flair, a noted chef brings fresh flavor and zest to 250 original and modified recipes culled from her favorite street cafes and restaurants. Original. IP. "

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #515601 in Books
• Published on: 1997-07-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

From Booklist
A good French bistro may earn its renown for steak and pommes frites, but the best bistros have plenty of menu items that classify in the vegetarian category. Spieler appreciates the care that bistros take with vegetables, and her book elevates what are commonly side dishes to the status of entrees. Spieler offers some superior salads, both familiar cold salads as well as warm ones that combine cool, crisp greens with freshly cooked hot items, such as potatoes or cheese. For decades, great French restaurants have known that the secret to making vegetables memorable lies in dressing each vegetable separately and distinctively to make each a unique presentation. Spieler heeds that custom and also puts forth omelets, rissotos, and pastas to increase the substance of vegetarian dining. The current success of bistros in the U.S. and renewed interest in vegetarian cooking will create demand for Spieler's authentic recipes. Mark Knoblauch

About the Author
Marlena Spieler is the author of over 50 cookbooks published worldwide and has written for Bon Appetit and Saveur . She writes the award-winning food column "The Roving Feast," and is a three-time James Beard nominee. Born in Sacramento, California, she currently lives in Hampshire, England.

Customer Reviews

Authentic, creative vegetarian solutions to French cooking
Having grown up in France, I have yearned for authentic vegetarian recipes. This brings France home. The recipes are easy, full of flavor, worth sharing with non vegetarians proudly. Even my kids ate the recipes. Some are higher in fat than I like, but I found them easy to adapt successfully (and I would not consider myself a cook). Worth every penny and a fun read.

Great French Fare
This cookbook offers a great selection of dishes that taste like authentic French fare. The author provides short vignettes with each recipe, sort of travelogue pieces that set the stage for the dish. There are charming illustrations peppered throughout the book. The writing is straight-forward and the author's zest is apparent. She is more liberal with the fats than I would be, but this is easily adjusted. She also admits to a fondness for lots of garlic-- here too the recipes can use one clove instead of her preferred five cloves, or the garlic can be roasted to provide a mellow rather than biting flavor.

There are a variety of satisfying dishes that are quite true to their origins. The author provides some filling entrees, such as Puree Of Beans And Potatoes Over Roasted Red Peppers; Stuffed Savoy Cabbage; Pasta With Pistou And Goat Cheese; and Potato Cheese Cakes. She also presents a number of stews and souffles. Among the soups are great recipes for Fennel, Zucchini And Leek; Asparagus And Tomato; Celery And Celeriac; and Carrot And Tomato With Cumin. The salad section does not rely on greens: recommended are the Fennel And Red Pepper; the White Beans With Black Olive Dressing; and the Belgian Endives Baked With Roquefort. There are also good cheese and dessert sections in this wonderful cookbook.

Excellent recipes
Delicious food and easy to prepare- all of the recipes we have tried from this book were winners. I have lots of vegetarian cookbooks, but this one has plenty of recipes and combinations that are missing in the others. There are also wine and side dish serving suggestions. However, I just can't stand the deckeled edges of the book. Sure- it gives a quaint, rustic appeal to the book, but it makes flipping through the pages impossible. The lack of photos and the layout of the pages takes away from an otherwise great cookbook. If it were redesigned, I'd buy another copy in a heartbeat.