The French Menu Cookbook

As those who knew him will attest, Francophile and food writer Richard Olney was one of a kind — a writerly cook who had a tremendous influence on American cooking via his well-worn cottage on a hillside in Provence. Born in the Midwest in 1927 and drawn to France at the tender age of twenty-four, Olney was unapologetically attracted to the style, flavors, and tastes of French cooking when most Americans were smitten by the wonders of the new prepared foods in their markets. With unrelenting passion and precision, Olney studied and explored the cuisine, carefully documenting all he had learned for future generations of chefs, cooks, and food lovers. His first of several landmark works, The French Menu Cookbook was well ahead of its time with its authentic French recipes and then-unheard-of seasonal approach to cooking. Little did we know then that The French Menu Cookbook would provide inspiration for Alice Waters and her compatriots as they built the groundwork for a culinary revolution in America. Brimming with the honest and enlightening explanations of how the French really cook and the 150-plus authentic recipes, this book is a masterful resource that is a must for every serious cook.

"The writer to whom Olney immediately demands comparison is Elizabeth David. The prose of each is characterized by an aesthetic sensibility enmeshed in the stabilizing regimen of a strictly imposed self-discipline." John Thorne, author of Pot on the Fire

"Richard Olney is someone who truly lives what he believes — cooking simply from the garden and drinking wonderful wines from the cellar. His French Menu Cookbook is an inspiration, giving a lasting insight into a special way of life." Alice Waters

This spring Ten Speed Press is pleased to announce the birth of the Culinary Classics and Curios series, a line of long-ago published seminal books for serious cooks and food lovers. Selected by our editors with the help of chef friends, food writers, and authors, each of the Classics and Curios has been chosen because it remains influential, even if it's out of print, hard to find, and well aged. Those in the know consider these books among their most coveted volumes and still swear by them, forever enchanted by the uncommon personality, information, and passion that is their collective hallmark. To help recreational and professional cooks alike rediscover the special value of these books, each new edition features a substantive introduction by a wellknown food writer with a meaningful connection to the work. The Classics and Curios are quality hardcover editions at affordable prices. As serious cooks and cookbook collectors, we here at Ten Speed are delighted to finally have these culinary canons back in our kitchen libraries and know they'll find their way onto the shelves of those who share our passion for good cooking.<P>As those who knew him will attest, Francophile and food writer Richard Olney was one of a kind — a writerly cook who had a tremendous influence on American cooking via his well-worn cottage on a hillside in Provence. Born in the Midwest in 1927 and drawn to France at the tender age of twenty-four, Olney was unapologetically attracted to the style, flavors, and tastes of French cooking when most Americans were smitten by the wonders of the new prepared foods in their markets. With unrelenting passion and precision, Olney studied and explored the cuisine, carefullydocumenting all he had learned for future generations of chefs, cooks, and food lovers. His first of several landmark works, "The French Menu Cookbook" was well ahead of its time with its authentic French recipes and then-unheard-of seasonal approach to cooking. Little did

RICHARD OLNEY was born and raised in Iowa, one of eight children in a quintessential American family. After relocating to a Parisian suburb in 1951 and then buying a run-down property in Provence, Olney settled in France permanently. The author of eight books, Olney passed away at his Provençal home in the summer of 1999.