Memories of Gascony

by Pierre Koffmann

Original publisher: Mitchell Beazley

Date of publication: 2012

ISBN: 1845337093

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Recommended by

Caroline Conran

Food writer

Pierre Koffman was trained as a chef, and he ran a brilliant restaurant in London, La Tante Claire, this is his hymn of praise to French country cooking. It is extremely rare for a starred chef to understand anything much about home-cooks and home-cooking. But here he blesses us with recipes from his grandparents’ farm, literally la cuisine de grand-mère - dishes that we can make in our own kitchens, authentic and grounded. It is also a memoir and a record of a vanishing way of life, the way of the peasant farmers of South West France, one that had its own rhythm, relied on fresh seasonal produce from the farm, game, wild mushrooms, snails and on making the most of everything.

William Curley

Patissier and chocolatier

As a young chef, I worked for Pierre Koffmann in the kitchen of La Tante Claire. He is one of the most influential chefs of our time and was fundamental in my training. This book takes you on his life’s journey through cooking, from childhood nostalgia growing up in Gascony, though to three star Michelin dishes iconic to him. It really epitomises his philosophy.

Bill Buford

Author

There were several French chefs popular in Britain when I lived there: Raymond Blanc, the Roux Brothers, Nico. And they all wrote good books. But there is something magical in Koffman's memoire, his first. The dishes have soul. Grandmothers and uncles and long-lost friends seem to radiate from them. It is like a poem.

Paul Gayler

Chef

Pierre is a treasure in the hospitality world, passionate about food to the core and responsible for teaching so many of the great cooks around the UK. This book relives some of the life and times of the man while we can enjoy some great culinary classics of the region at the same time.

Tamasin Day-Lewis

Writer, film maker

After my first dinner at Tante Claire in Royal Hospital Road I discovered a level of cooking that I hadn't known existed, but with Pierre, it was rooted in the countryside of his childhood, the terroir, the seasons, all the things I believe in.