Jacques Pepin Celebrates

introduction In our family, we love to celebrate. Anything is an excuse for a celebration, and celebrations always mean food and wine. The holidays, from Christmas to the Fourth of July and Thanksgiving, are usually celebrated at home, as well as the obvious occasionsbirthdays, graduations, and anniversaries. A lovely spring day or a cold, crisp day in winter is a pretext for my wife, Gloria, and me to celebrate. Likewise, beautiful artichokes and a plump duck from the market make me want to cook and share the bounty. In our house, life itself is a celebration. Any ritual means being together around the table. In our family, the table is the place where all the important events of our life are discussed and resolved, and it is where our family traditions are upheld and sustained. Above all, the table is the place for sharing and pleasure, for, as Brillat-Savarin said, "The pleasures of the table are for every man, of every land, and no matter of what place in history or society; they can be part of all his other pleasures, and they last the longest, to console him when he has outlived the rest." In this book and its companion television series, I am offering recipes that I have prepared over many years and for countless celebrations. Many of the recipes are drawn from the two volumes of The Art of Cooking, which was published in the late 1980s. I have given new life and interpretation to many of these recipes, which are part of our family culinary tradition. With many of the recipes, I have added pictures of the proper techniques required to create these dishes. These often basic procedures and techniques are a very important part of the book and are meant to show certain tours de main, or tricks of the trade, that are difficult to explain in words aloneand isn't a picture worth a thousand words? Although each of these techniques is presented with a specific recipe to which it applies in the book, it often can an0d should be used in conjunction with other recipes to which it applies. For example, peeling and seeding a tomato, crushing garlic, making a mignonnette, and using a pastry bag are techniques used over and over again in the book. Knowing how to master these procedures will free you from having to look at a recipe over and over again, and that basic knowledge will help you, regardless of which cookbook you choose to cook from. Furthermore, this useful and essential part of the book relates also to the visuals of television, and all the recipes and techniques included in the book are demonstrated on the PBS series Jacques Pepin Celebrates. Some recipes, like the Consomme Printanier with Chicken Quenelles, the Caviar with Blini and Frozen Vodka, and the Volcano Surprise with Lemon Mousseline Cake are more elaborate, intended for special parties. Other dishes, such as the Black Bean Soup Augier, the Roasted Turkey with Bread-and-Mushroom Stuffing, and the Rhubarb Galette are inexpensive, simple fare, part of what we eat every day. Meals should be eclectic, diversified, and reflect the occasion, the season, and the mood of the cook. In my family, sometimes dinner is quickly prepared, inexpensive, and extremely simple, such as a soup, an omelet, and a tomato salad, or a pizza, a green salad, and some cheeses, and, always, a glass of wine. At other times, the fare is more elaborate and more time-consuming to prepare, often the type of food we enjoy making on the weekend. Such a menu may include the Souffle of Mussels and Basil, Braised Duck with Glazed Shallots and Honey Sweet Potatoes, a salad, cheeses, and Red BerriesSoaked Cake. In summer, we sometimes eat only from the garden, enjoying a green salad, or a stew of zucchini or eggplant. One type of meal is not necessarily better than another when everything is prepared with care, with love, with fresh ingredients, and with some knowledge of cooking.Pepin, Jacques is the author of 'Jacques Pepin Celebrates', published 2001 under ISBN 9780375412097 and ISBN 0375412093.