My new favorite cookbook - Country Cooking of France

Country Cooking of France by Anne Willan. 

I go to the library about every 3 weeks and each time I go I walk through the cookbook section looking for something new or something I have not read before.  I picked this book up and brought it home to read having never heard of it. I ended up reading it cover to cover.  Over time I've learned that instead of buying books and hoping that I like them, I now check them out of the library first and check them out before buying them and being disappointed.  

Books like this are meant to be relished.  Every morning while I was having my coffee, I turned pages and read the book.  I got lost, in the stories, many about certain recipes, and about the villages where these recipes were born, and about the people.  There are also some stories about the great restaurants and chefs of France.  It was so enjoyable reading the stories and I consider it an added bonus that you don't normally get with a cookbook.  And of course reading all the recipes and the techniques was the interesting part to me and is usually the reason I buy a cookbook. 

After reading this book only part way I knew I had to own this book. Books like this are very rare.  The recipes are wonderful, the stores an added bonus, and the photos make you feel like you are there.  It is beautifully written and so authentic.  There are tons of cookbooks on the market and lots of them are not very good. I've tried making recipes from some of these books and they don't turn out. And I am a good cook. I know what I'm doing.  That is why, when I find a book like this, I have to own it and add it to my collection, and I feel compelled to share it. I think it is part of the enjoyment to see my friends appreciate the book along with me.

My husband and I will enjoy many great meals from this book, and I get the enjoyment of trying new recipes that I would never otherwise make. I can't wait to get started. There is a recipe for a goat cheese salad I want to make so I already made the marinated goat cheese the other day. In a week or so the cheese will be ready and I can then make the salad. And when I do, you can bet I will share it on my food blog for you to enjoy.