Fresh From the Market - Cookbook Review

Seasonal Cooking with Laurent Tourondel

By Laurent Tourondel and Charlotte March
(Wiley, 2010)

Fresh From the Market: Seasonal Cooking with Laurent Tourondel is a beautiful cookbook with inspiring recipes and gorgeous photos of culinary indulgences that take advantage of the best seasonal produce.  Divided by the seasons and featuring a complete list of what is at its peak each month — including vegetables, fruits, seafood, fungi, herbs and meat — this book offers a collection of more than 160 recipes that highlight the use of locally grown ingredients and celebrate nature’s bounty. Each of the four sections also has two menus complete with cocktails, appetizers, main courses and desserts for special occasions such as a mother's day brunch or a wine harvest dinner, and each recipe offers a suggested wine pairing.

However, do not assume that because this cookbook makes use of seasonal ingredients that it is intended for the novice cook, because these recipes are by no means easy.  Indeed, chef Laurent Tourondel of the famed BLT Restaurants didn’t become the star chef he is today by making a simple roast chicken. His recipes are adventurous and require skill, and the ingredients are fresh and high-quality but often hard to find.  We made the pan-seared East Coast halibut with caramelized cauliflower & hazelnuts (because this, surprisingly, was one of the simplest recipes in the book), and our dinner guests loved it.  The sauces were creamy and delicate to complement the flaky, moist fish, and the accompanying Brussels sprouts (seasoned with garlic, sage and hazelnuts), were flavorful and completed this elegant dish.  Another recipe we tried was the butternut squash soup, which was velvety with just the right amount of richness and spice, perfect for a crisp fall day.  A few other recipes that piqued our interest included the green papaya and mango salad with Dungeness crab and spicy Thai basil-mint dressing for spring, creamy corn risotto and grilled langoustine with summer truffles for summer, honey crisp apple cakes with pumpkin spice ice cream for fall, and diver sea scallops with endive marmalade and caramelized tangerine-Meyer lemon vinaigrette for winter. 

What this cookbook doesn’t offer are recipes for easy weeknight dinners for your family or budget meals on-the-go; this is a cookbook that takes food seriously.  From buying the freshest seasonal ingredients, executing the vibrant recipes and serving the dishes artfully for the most effective presentation, Fresh From The Market: Seasonal Cooking with Laurent Tourondel encompasses everything that goes into preparing a successful meal.  This is a gem of a cookbook for chefs-in-training and gourmands wanting beautiful new recipes to master that are sure to inspire praise from their guests and delight their senses.

Reviewed by Ashley Heinonen