Not Just a Cook Book

 Not Just a Cook Book €20.00

(plus €5.00 postage & packaging within the Republic - postage may vary internationally) is available now
click here to purchase
from l'Ecrivain Restaurant.

 

 

Acclaimed restaurateurs Derry and Sallyanne Clarke, of the famous Michelin-starred l’Ecrivain restaurant,  have teamed up with journalist Tom Doorley to write Not Just a Cook Book, featuring stories and exclusive recipes from the renowned Baggot Street eatery.  With a foreword by writer Hugh Leonard and stunning photography by Mike O’Toole, Not Just a Cook Book includes an entertaining potted autobiography by Derry, who recalls the early influences on his cooking - from his mother’s hearty stews with whole cloves of garlic, and his father’s shark fin soup; to the classic “cuisine bourgeoisie” of Le Coq Hardi, where Derry spent his formative years as a chef in the late 70s and early 80.

 

“I learned the lesson that that there’s simply nothing better than old fashioned food when it’s done well,” writes Derry, who went on with his wife Sallyanne in 1989, to open l’Ecrivain, hat-trick winner of Food & Wine Magazine’s Restaurant Of The Year Award, 2000-2003.  


Not Just a Cook Book also features fascinating behind-the-scenes contributions from Sallyanne, from the restaurant’s chief suppliers, and from the hard-working staff, and includes an illuminating chapter on Matching Food With Wine.
 

At the core of the book are of course Derry’s fabulous recipes, all of which have been tried and tested by independent cooks. They range from Deep Fried Dublin Bay Prawns in Ketaifi Pastry, Lemon Mayonnaise, Chilli Jam & Cucumber Relish; to Boudin of Clonakilty Black Pudding with Cashel Blue Cheese & Cider Sorbet, Crisp Cured Bacon & Stout Jus; to Bere Island Scallops with Mussel and Clam Orzo, Sweetcorn and Chervil Sabbayon; to Tempura of Organic Vegetables with Oven-dried Aubergine, Chilli Jam and Aioli.

There are more than 90 easy-to-follow recipes, many beautifully illustrated, for starters, main courses and desserts, as well as useful no-nonsense guides to making standards such as stocks, jus, mayonnaise, aioli, pasta, puff pastry, risotto and crème anglais.