COPYRIGHT 2006 BY TYLER FLORENCE
PHOTOGRAPHS COPYRIGHT 2006 BY PETRINA TINSLAY
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
PUBLISHED IN THE UNITED STATES BY CLARKSON POTTER/PUBLISHERS,
AN IMPRINT OF THE CROWN PUBLISHING GROUP,
A DIVISION OF RANDOM HOUSE, INC., NEW YORK.
WWW.CROWNPUBLISHING.COM
WWW.CLARKSONPOTTER.COM
CLARKSON N. POTTER IS A TRADEMARK AND POTTER AND COLOPHON ARE REGISTERED TRADEMARKS OF RANDOM HOUSE, INC.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA IS AVAILABLE UPON REQUEST.
from Tyler Florence Fresh by Tyler Florence, copyright 2012 by Tyler Florence. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
from Tyler Florences Real Kitchen by Tyler Florence, copyright 2003 by Tyler Florence. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
from Eat This Book by Tyler Florence. Copyright 2005 by Tyler Florence. Published by Clarkson Potter/Publishers, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
eISBN: 978-0-307-95371-1
v3.1
FOR MY SON, MILES
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
AN EXPERIENCE OF THE ULTIMATE IN PLEASURE FOR MEA STATE OF MIND ABOUT FEEDING MYSELF AND MY FRIENDS AND FAMILY WELL AND ENJOYING SIMPLE PLEASURES OVER AN AMAZING MEAL.
ONCE A YEAR I GET THIS DEEP ITCH TO GO TO EUROPE, SOAK UP THE CULTURE, COOK, EAT, LIVE, AND DREAM GREAT FOOD. So last summer I packed up the family and went off to spend the last two weeks of July in one of my favorite spots, a small town in the south of France about 30 minutes north of Nice. It was lavender season. The air was sweet, and I was hungryhungry to re-charge my batteries, clear my head, immerse myself in food, and write this book.
Twice a week I drove along country roads lined with fields of huge, yellow sunflowers into Nice, where I strolled through open-air markets and reminded myself why I love being a chef. Shopping in these markets is a truly amazing experience: The scent of tomato vines clings to the air as shoppers and merchants haggle over prices, each enacting the rituals inherent to the mysterious French religion of food. Everywhere you look there is something delicious. Rounds of un-pasteurized cheeses taste as rich as butter, frozen in time. Briny oysters covered in perfect, tiny barnacles taste like little sips of seawater. Young chickens, cavities stuffed with fresh herbs, spin slowly on rotisseries; their skin is crisp and golden and the smell is just incredible.
There are crocks of gleaming multihued olives as juicy as grapes, hanging ropes of smoky saucissons, and aubergines, black as midnight, practically begging to be stewed into ratatouille. Standing there among the food stalls, I drank in all of those colors and smells and tastes and I couldnt wait to get home to cook. Id leave carrying so many plastic bags that the tips of my fingers turned purple and I couldnt have been happier.
Once back at the house Id head straight for the kitchen, unpack the bags, and fire up the stoves. And then I was on my way, transforming what Id seen at the market into great, simple home cooking. One night, inspired by those gorgeous rotisserie birds, I smeared a chicken all over with a rich, green paste of chopped parsley, thyme, tarragon, garlic, and olive oil, threw the chicken in a roasting pan with hunks of zucchini, tomato, and onion and roasted it all until the chicken was infused with the scent of the herbs and the vegetables melted alongside it.
Another day, inspired by the pizza-like onion tarts native to that part of France, I spread hunks of baguette with caramelized onions, tossed on olives, thyme, and anchovies for flavor and local color, then showered it all with grated Parmigiano and threw it in the oven to crisp. The smell brought the kids running in from the pool where theyd been hanging out. We scarfed that down and followed it up with sauted sausages served with apples caramelized in the pan drippings and a little brown sugar, buttered cabbage, and mashed potatoes. Simple and delicious.
That summer was an experience of the Ultimate in pleasure for mea state of mind about feeding myself and my friends and family well and enjoying simple pleasures over an amazing meal. This book is an expression of all that in recipesthe ultimate in delicious simple home cooking, the ultimate in accessibility, the ultimate in translating food from around the worldfrom restaurants, from homes, from street foodinto a dish you can put together in a reasonable amount of time in your own home with the ultimate confidence that youre going to knock it out of the park.
You dont need to be in the south of France to cook this way. When I got home to New York, I scoured my local grocery stores for my favorite ingredients (and yeah, it helps to live in Chinatown, but supermarkets these days carry an abundance of ethnic foods so its easier and easier to find great stuff from all over the world). And I kept searching for those amazing, ultimate dishes that anyone can make at homefor a birthday, a backyard barbecue, or just because its Tuesday night.
Check out the Ultimate Crab Cakes, the best crab cakes Ive ever eaten, made with big hunks of jumbo lump crabmeat and fresh breadcrumbs. What you taste is sweet, fresh seafood just barely held together by light breading; theyre dynamite with smoky chipotle mayonnaise. The Ultimate Fried Chicken, borrowed from my good friend Cesare Casella at Maremma restaurant in New York City, is just about the best fried chicken you can make because the chicken is perfumed with fresh herbs and garlic. And you dont have to own a restaurant in New York to make it. Or Lemon Curry Chicken, a simple chicken stew inspired by the flavors of India and served with a rice salad spiked with sweet mango, crunchy cashews, and mint; youll whip it up in under an hourthe quickest trip to India youll ever take.
I love the craft of cooking, I love traveling, and I love sharing it all with you. As the years go by I will still be here slugging away in the kitchen and finding amazing recipes that we can cook together. Its been a great ride so far and I cant thank you enough for your continued support. I hope that with this book I have created a cooking tool that you will really use. So dont be shy dig in!
TYLER FLORENCE NEW YORK CITY
With everyones lives so crazy, theres something really practical about having delicious, small bites of food on the table for friends and family when they walk in the door. It buys you another half hour in the kitchen while the rest of the meal cooks, and it gives everybody a chance to relax with a glass of wine. Starters, appetizers, or first course, whatever you want to call them, they dont have to be complicated or over the top. Everything works, from something as simple as juicy, roasted cherry tomato salsa served with a big bowl of tortilla chips, to a delicious creamy soup that takes two seconds to buzz down in a blender. Some of these appetizers are substantial enough for a full meal, if its just two of you. Heres a collection of recipes that will give you a little breathing space and make you look like a superhero at your dinner party.