Meeting a True Culinary Legend
Over the course of my 15 year culinary career I have met many chef’s. Some are just people that do a great job on camera, and some are both great chefs that really know how to cook and do a great job on camera. But it is very rare to meet a true legend that can cook and write and really does know how to cook. This weekend I met such a woman, Anne Willian of La Varenne Cooking School in France. She has written many books, all worth owning. They are not just a compilation of wonderful recipes but they are history books. The new book is The Cookbook Library – Four Centuries of the Cooks, Writers, and Recipes That Made the Modern Cookbook.
I was fortunate to be at one of the signings for this new book in Los Angeles on Monday. The book signing party was hosted by my friend and mentor Denise Vivaldo of Food Fanatics. This book is years in the making and a wonderful collection to any cookbook library.
I am currently reading, and learning a great deal about the history of French cuisine, The Country Cooking of France, the most beautiful cookbook that I have in my library. If you don’t know Anne Willian, you should get to know her in one of her many cookbooks, you will be a better cook for it.
A Medieval Wine recipe Ypocras (Spiced Red Wine) recipe by Anne Willian
1 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground mace
1 tablespoon ground cloves
1 tablespoon ground grains of paradise (see substitution in the link)
1 bottle (750 ml) fruity red wine such as merlot
Cheesecloth
In a medium nonmetallic bowl, stir together the sugar, cinnamon, mace, cloves and grains of paradise. Add the wine and stir well. Leave for 10 minutes, then stir again to dissolve the sugar fully. Cover tightly and leave at room temperature for 1 to 2 days.
Strain the wine mixture through the strainer lined with a double layer of cheesecloth into a bowl. A brown deposit will be left on the cheesecloth. Rinse it off and strain the wine at least once more through the cheesecloth to clarify it as well as possible. Store the wine in an airtight container (if you like, use the original bottle) at room temperature. It will keep up to 1 month.
This is a great wine for the holidays too.
