Step-by-step photos demonstrate Richard's innovative technique that makes easy work of dicing, shaping, ruffling, and a plethora of other indispensable hand skills. With recipe titles such as Shrimp REinstein, S Jackson Pollock Soup, Chicken Faux Gras, Figgy Piggy, and Happy Kid Pudding, this book's promise is good tastes and good times. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.

Starred Review. In this hefty follow-up to his 1993 debut (Home Cooking with a French Accent), Richard imparts culinary wisdom of the highest order in cheerful nursery tones. Humpty Dumpty, Captain Crunch and a vegetable called Mr. Beet are a few of the merry characters who populate his kitchen. Goofiness apart, the book is filled with clever, innovative techniques and little-known time-savers (microwave béchamel, anybody? food processor sorbet?). Most of the recipes hinge on Richard's unconventional methods, and their successful execution does require a certain level of skill. Attention-grabbers like Asparagus Salmon (in which asparagus spears are slipped inside the pocket of a salmon fillet which is then sliced like a terrine), and Red Snapper in a Spinach Coating are elegant enough to serve to a Michelin inspector, yet are corralled and fenced within the range of ability of a competent home cook. Other dishes are more demanding the superlative Lamb Loin with White Bean Sauce, for example. In any case, professional cooks and serious amateurs will find this volume an essential resource. (Oct. 31) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

This gorgeous work could certainly find a place in any home. It's packed with ingenious, unusual, and beautifully presented dishes, so that experienced or ambitious cooks will enjoy re-creating Richard's recipes and those who hesitate to attempt the more complicated possibilities will delight in the sumptuous photos and entertaining essays throughout. Richard, celebrated chef and owner of Michel Richard Citronelle and author of Michel Richard's Home Cooking with a French Accent, began his career as a pastry chef and clearly brings an eye both for beauty and for detail, as well as a wonderfully playful attitude, to every dish he prepares, whether savory or sweet. This book includes a wide range of possibilities, from All-Crust Potato Gratin to Fluffy Spinach Bites with Fonduta Sauce to Black Olive-Crusted Salmon with Green Olive Sauce. Richard also includes a list of culinary tools used, plus helpful instructional spreads with descriptions and illustrations on how to shape and tie a lamb shoulder, for instance, or how to peel and cut the flesh from a tomato. Recommended for all public libraries. Courtney Greene, DePaul Univ. Lib., Chicago Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From: Reed Elsevier Inc. Copyright Reed Business Information

Why Didn't I Think of That?
Foreword	ix
It's Okay to Play with Your Food	x
How to Use This Book	xi
They're All Secret Ingredients	xiv
My Toy Box	xvi
Cutting	xvi
Cooking and Heating	xvii
Mixing and Straining	xviii
Molding and Shaping	xix
Vegetables	1
Potatoes	2
The Fred Astaire of Vegetables	5
Corn	32
Like Sunshine on a Plate	33
Tomatoes	42
The Embarrassed Fruit	43
Mushrooms	54
Forest Jewels	54
New Waters	58
Carrots	66
They Call Me Captain Crunch	66
Me as a Vegetable	78
Onions	82
Pungent, Pleasant, and Perfect	84
A Few Green Vegetables	98
Peppers	110
Shellfish and Fish	117
Shellfish	118
Romancing the Food	126
Finfish	138
Red, White, and Fish	138
The Pleasures of Plastic Wrap	156
Birds	177
Chicken	178
The Virtues of Crisp and the Praises of Moist	181
Sticking Together	184
The Great Binding Revelation	185
Other Birds	194
Meats	207
Pork	208
The Pleasures of Pig	208
Sharpening Your Food	214
Lamb	220
The Cheerful Meat	221
Beef	236
Full Blooded	236
Desserts	251
Some Fruits and Unfruits	252
Berries	273
Chocolate	284
Chocolate-The Real Passion Fruit	284
Basics	302
Sources	315
Acknowledgments	319
Index	321

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