Life Is Meals

by Salter, James; Salter, Kay; Moireau, Fabrice

• ISBN13: 9780375711398
• ISBN10: 0375711392
• Edition: Reprint
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2010-11-02
• Publisher: Alfred a Knopf Inc

Summary

Now in paperback: the charming, beautifully illustrated food loverrs"s companion that, with an entry for each day of the year, takes us from a Twelfth Night cake in January to a champagne dinner on New Yearrs"s Eve.Life Is Mealsis rich with culinary wisdom, history, recipes, literary pleasures, and the authorsrs" stories of their triumphs-and catastrophes-in the kitchen.

Author Biography

James Salter is the author of nine previous books, including the novel A Sport and a Pastime; the collection Dusk and Other Stories, which won the 1989 PEN/Faulkner Award; and a memoir, Burning the Days: Recollection. Kay Salter, a journalist and playwright, has written for The New York Times and Food & Wine, among other publications. The Salters live in Colorado and on Long Island.

Excerpts

Béchamel Sauce

Béchamel, the delicious white sauce for creamed vegetables, soufflés, and croquettes, first appeared in France during the reign of Louis XIV (1643-1715), though it may have been created earlier and elsewhere. It was named for Louis de Bechameil, a handsome, corrupt financier who served as the king's majordomo. He had all the luck, complained an old duke who said he had been serving chicken in a cream sauce since before Bechameil was born, and no one had named any kind of sauce for him.

Béchamel is simple to make and takes only about five minutes. There are a number of variations using more or less butter and flour, depending on the desired thickness, but the foundation for all of them is the same.


Ingredients

2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons flour
2 cups milk heated to a boil in a small saucepan


In a saucepan, melt the butter over low heat. Add the flour slowly, stirring until they are smoothly blended without browning. Remove from heat. Add the milk and stir vigorously with a wire whisk. Set over medium heat, stirring until the sauce comes to a boil; then cook for another minute, stirring constantly. Makes two cups.


From the Hardcover edition.