Caseus means home. Ok, not really, it's Latin for cheese. But the book, Caseus Fromagerie Bistro Cookbook: Every Cheese Has a Story, strikes a balance and feels like home, weird uncle included.
I am totally biased. The author is a friend, and I helped test many of the recipes that don the pages, but you should keep reading because it's that good. There is a warmth and familiarity - the photos feel like you are thumbing through an old Time Life book, and are juxtaposed recipes that talk at and with you. (There are several fonts used throughout, one for the recipes, and others for tips, techniques, and stories.) So old-timey photography - check. Conversational writing - check. Oh and then there is the mildly lewd opening quote referencing a copy of Playboy. Weird uncle - check.
Caseus is filled with too many contradictions. It shouldn't work, but it does. There is a blending of family, friends, co-workers, personal favorites, restaurant classics, side-stories, gourmet and high-end ingredients peppered throughout comfort foods. On my second visit to the restaurant and cheese shop I saw t-shirt-and-jeans lunch goers enjoying an amazing grilled cheese, next to a couple in 3-piece suits celebrating with a bottle of very nice champagne. It shouldn't work, but it does, and Jason has done a pretty astounding job of capturing it, with humor, throughout 160 pages.
Beef and Veal Stock - yes, the bovine are swimming
These staff and family profiles one of my favorite parts
Casoulette - this shot reminds me of 2008's fall bacon club
Really beautiful watercolors
Are you intrigued? Is your mouth watering? Do you want a copy... for free?!
Here are the rules. Follow them, and you are on your way to winning a copy of your own.
Book give-away rules:
-post a comment and tell me what your favorite cheese is
-one entry per person
-entries must be received before 10am on Friday, March 23
*Gluten-free special - if you win, I will convert 3 gluten-filled recipes of your choice, into gluten-free recipes
