Alone In The Kitchen With An Old Frenchman

Recently French chef Jacques Pépin turned 80 and retired. Over the years, he educated viewers of Public Television on how to cook and, something that no other cooking show host has done, techniques in the kitchen with wisdom, humor and a smattering of French lessons. As Gilad Edelman wrote in a Slate article, this man will teach you how to cook

Earth to Table

For Jacques, nothing beats an earthy soup to keep you warm during the coldest season, and his Hearty Vegetable Bean Soup hits the spot. To spice up the evening, he creates pockets in boneless chicken breasts and fills them with a tasty stuffing in Chicken Suprêmes with Tapenade and Mushroom Sauce served over Vegetable Couscous. The meal ends on a sweet note with a Pear Compote and freshly baked Almond Crumble Cookies.

Hearty Vegetable Bean Soup (pdf)

Minute Recipe: Melba Toast(pdf)

I like my toast very thin and crunchy. If you put a very thin slice of bread in the toaster, however, it tends to burn and curl up. The solution is to use the technique Escoffier used when he created the ultrathin toast that he named Melba toast in tribute to the Australian opera singer Nellie Melba.