MKMT Cookbook Review – A Platter of Figs
It was another day of good cooking and eating as the MKMT Cookbook club gathered to share recipes from A Platter of Figs by David Tanis. The timing was perfect for the summer menus and all but a couple of the recipes that were made came from these menus which meant a lot of seasonal produce and several duplicate dishes.
Overall feedback about the book was positive. The package is beautiful with gorgeous photography and it is well written with thoughtful anecdotes interspersed throughout the pages. We liked how the book was laid out by season and then by menu and how simple most recipes were with the focus being quality of ingredient. The author writes an introduction to each menu that includes information about how to think like a cook, use your instinct around the kitchen and improvise in addition to following a recipe. Reading and cooking from A Platter of Figs can make us all more comfortable in the kitchen and better able to stare into the refrigerator and pull out a few ingredients and whip something up on our own.
One cook at the table commented that he thought “the introduction was a little arrogant, but since the author is the chef at Chez Panisse gives him justification to be opinionated”. Another cook commented that “the quality of the ingredients is so important to the recipes that it is a bit pricy for every day cooking”.
The recipes are all supposed to serve 8-10 people and some of us halved them to make smaller portions, making them more realistic for a family meal or dinner for 4 vs. a larger dinner party.
Menus and Recipes that were made included:
Too Darned Hot, Alors! Menu Eight
Lavender Honey Ice Cream three of us made this ice cream and each was quite different. Mine had the least amount of lavender flavor and was the lightest in color despite the fact that I picked the lavender that morning fresh from the garden. The two others had more intense and pronounced lavender and honey flavor and were also darker in color. We all used plain honey as the lavender honey suggested in the recipe was spotted at $15 for a jar.
Slightly All-American Menu Eight – we made this whole menu.
Sliced Tomatoes with Sea Salt – it doesn’t get much more straight forward than this and with the heirloom tomatoes at their peak this dish couldn’t have been easier to make or tastier. Grilled Chicken Breasts were succulent and packed with flavor.
Corn, Squash, and Beans with Jalapeño Butter was the most time consuming of the recipes in this menu and the jalapeno butter packed a punch.
Blueberry-Blackberry Crumble – there were 3 of these so one we didn’t cook and put in the freezer! The two we ate were both delicious, although as expected, there were subtle nuances between them.
Yellow Hunger Menu Nine
Shaved Summer Squash and Peaches in Wine were both made and both wonderful – how can one go wrong with squash and peaches both in their prime.
Feeling Italian, Part I Menu Ten
Cherry Tomato Crostini with Ricotta is addicting and incredibly easy – a must make several times in the peak of tomato season.
I made the Roast Pork Loin Porchetta Style and needed to adjust the recipe a bit as well as cook slightly longer that the recipe calls for. The menu was finished with the Nectarine and Raspberry Macedonia - peaches and nectarines and stone fruit and berries oh my!
The final recipe from the summer menus was the Cold Pink Borscht in a Glass from Hot Day, Cold Chicken Menu Twelve. There seems to be a trend developing around the table that there is usually something made with beets that is fuchsia! As a non-beet eater ( I think they taste like dirt but keep trying to acquire the taste) I loved this soup and slurped it up.
One of the recipes that fell outside of the summer menu, was Mustard Rabbit in the Oven - spring and a whole lesson about how to cook rabbit. This dish was so savory with Dijon mustard, Crème Fraîche, and pancetta, how could be a bunny be bad? This is a must make for romantic dinner or small dinner party entree. It is unique and flavors unparalleled. Chef Tanis even includes a recipe for home made crème fraîche for those so inclined. He is convinced that commercial product is sub-par – this recipe is also referenced in the Lavendar Honey Ice Cream.
It is far to say that this cookbook should be a staple on the cookbook shelf. It makes an excellent gift for a favorite seasoned home chef. Since many recipes are guidelines and leave some finessing up to the cook, I wouldn’t suggest it for someone who isn’t comfortable in the kitchen. Because of the organization by season it is fair to say that we will likely pull it out again for a winter MKMT cookbook club so we can dive into recipes like Green Chile Stew, Walnut Cigars, and Osso Buco with Orange, Lemon, and Capers.
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