La bonne cuisine de Madame E. Saint-Ange explained

La bonne cuisine de Madame E. Saint-Ange
Author:Marie Ébrard (writing as E. Saint-Ange)
Country:France
Language:French
Subject:Culinary Arts
Genre:non-fiction
Publisher:Éditions Larousse
Release Date:1927
Media Type:book

La bonne cuisine de Madame E. Saint-Ange is a French cookbook written by Marie Ébrard under the name E. Saint-Ange and published in 1927 by Larousse. A "classic text of French home cooking", it is a highly detailed work documenting the cuisine bourgeoise of early 20th century France, including technical descriptions of the kitchen equipment of the day.[1]

Before writing La bonne cuisine, the author had written a cooking column in her husband's magazine Le Pot au Feu for twenty years, and much of the content is drawn from that magazine.[1] The book was originally published as Le livre de cuisine de Madame Saint-Ange: recettes et méthodes de la bonne cuisine française; the current title was drawn from a later abridgement, and was retroactively applied to a modest updating of the original work by the publisher in the 1950s. Other editions use the title La cuisine de Madame Saint-Ange.

Many American chefs and cooking teachers working in French cuisine have cited it as a significant influence, including Madeleine Kamman, Julia Child,[2] and Paul Aratow, the co-founder of Chez Panisse; Aratow translated it into English.[3] [4] [5]

Though the book reflects the equipment and the tastes of the 1920s, reviewers have found it useful for cooking today:

Its recipes work; the dishes they produce are delicious; the extensive advice is empowering. ...this is a book that cries out to be cooked with.[6]

Notes and References

  1. Jacky Durand, "Un sacré goût de vieux", Libération 3 June 2010 full text
  2. [Noël Riley Fitch]
  3. [Tom Jaine]
  4. Paul Aratow, translator, La Bonne Cuisine de Madame E. Saint-Ange: The Original Companion for French Home Cooking, Ten Speed Press, 2005,
  5. [Amanda Hesser]
  6. [Barbara Ketcham Wheaton]