THE CUISINE OF NORMANDY: French Regional Cooking with Princess Marie-Blanche de Broglie

by Marie-Blanche & Harriet Zukas de Broglie ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 24, 1984

Anyone who buys this on the supposition that it is a book about Norman food--a cousin of Paula Wolfert's The Cooking of South-West France or the Mireille Johnston books on Provence and Burgundy--will discover it to be mistitled. De Broglie, who conducts cooking classes both in Paris and at her home in Normandy, spends much time on typically eclectic cooking-school fare: boneless chicken breasts stuffed with chicken mousseline and julienned vegetables, caasoulet(!), ratatouille(!!) in aspic(!!), salads of eccentric combos like spinach and red cabbage with oranges, grapefruit, and avocado (the whole served with citrus-honey dressing). Some of these offerings are attractive enough, if not very Norman; main dishes tend to be solider and less gimmicky than the lighter fare, as well as to more closely resemble local cooking. There are also some delicious-sounding apple desserts to show off the region's chief glory. In truth, however, anyone can gain a hundred times more insight into the spirit of Norman cookery from Waverly Root's recipeless The Food of France or the ""Henriette"" chapter of Madeleine Kamman's When French Women Cook (1976).

Pub Date: Oct. 24, 1984

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Sept. 15, 1984

Categories: NONFICTION