An accomplished French cook offers 80 classic recipes to be prepared or tasted as a couple. "The love of food, when it is shared, is conducive to a blissful love life." —Brillat-Savarin, 18th-century French writer and epicurean Anticipating pleasures of the table with a loved one only heightens the delights in cooking together—particularly because cooking and eating are two delicious steps on "the way to the heart." Paquin offers 80 classic recipes to be prepared or tasted as a couple, according to the occasion—perhaps for a Valentine’s Day dinner at home, for an anniversary—any celebration that starts with dinner and a romantic mood. Pauquin’s suggestion for your candle-lit supper might start with oysters and fresh herb parcels of ginger and lime, and end with an improvised midnight feast in the bedroom of cherry and goat’s cheese covered in poppy seeds—toasted with raspberry confetti champagne. These irresistible dishes are sure to delight all the senses and season your romantic dining in an inimitable French style.
| Introduction | 11 | |
| Cocooning | 15 | |
| Mushroom soup with coconut | 16 | |
| Upside-down turnip tarts with sauteed foie gras | 18 | |
| Salad with goat cheese and dried figs | 20 | |
| Beef-on-a-string with horseradish cream | 20 | |
| Chicken breasts with chanterelle mushrooms and wild rice | 22 | |
| Stuffed fillet of cod | 25 | |
| Tagliatelli in cream with walnuts, hazelnuts, pistachios, olives, and Parma ham | 26 | |
| Arugula salad with lentils, jabugo ham, and mustard dressing | 28 | |
| Spiced compote of winter fruits with meringue | 28 | |
| Chocolate truffles with custard sauce | 30 | |
| Soup of citrus fruits flavored with vanilla | 33 | |
| Baked apples in spiced milk | 34 | |
| Coffee-cognac cocktail with cardamom and cinnamon | 36 | |
| Dinner by Candlelight | 39 | |
| Soft-boiled eggs with caviar fingers | 40 | |
| Quick-cooked foie gras terrine with asparagus and truffles | 42 | |
| Oysters and fresh herbs in filo pastry | 45 | |
| Creamed prawn soup with tandoori spices | 46 | |
| Baked scampi with bacon and basil | 46 | |
| Scallops with ginger and lime | 49 | |
| John Dory fillets with orange butter | 50 | |
| Quail in Baume de Venise stuffed with arugula, apples, and currants | 52 | |
| Pears stuffed with blue-cheese mouse | 54 | |
| Lamb sweetbreads with a salad of fava beans | 54 | |
| Summer-fruit cocktail in Sauterne jelly | 56 | |
| Champagne and tangerine cream | 58 | |
| Chocolate heart with raspberries | 58 | |
| In the Kitchen | 61 | |
| French toast with sauteed bacon | 62 | |
| Eggplant papillote with goat cheese, thyme, and olives | 64 | |
| Beef carpaccio with Parmesan cheese, olives, sun-dried tomatoes, and basil | 64 | |
| Chicken skewers in a hot marinade with red pepper, scallion, and ginger | 66 | |
| Spinach salad with egg, smoked duck breast, and Roquefort | 69 | |
| Fresh tuna pizzas | 70 | |
| Tagliatellini with sage and pancetta | 72 | |
| Compote of tomatoes with mozzarella, tapenade, and basil | 75 | |
| Baked red mullet, shallot butter with saffron, and fennel compote | 76 | |
| White-wine cocktail with Perrier and lemon | 78 | |
| Finger toasts with sardine butter, radishes, and pink peppercorns | 78 | |
| Egg custard with lemon | 80 | |
| Tiny coconut hearts | 83 | |
| A Riverside Lunch | 85 | |
| Surprise tomatoes with goat cheese and herbs | 86 | |
| Prawn toasts with avocado | 88 | |
| Green-and-red pasta salad with Tabasco | 88 | |
| Tuna tartare | 91 | |
| Salmon crepes with herbs | 92 | |
| Piquillo peppers stuffed with cod and mozzarella | 94 | |
| Barbecued marinated fillet of duck with snow peas | 97 | |
| Salad of grapes, goat cheese, and pancetta | 98 | |
| Cocktail of melon juice, vodka, and cassis | 100 | |
| Motoko's tiny pastry hearts | 100 | |
| Peaches in blackcurrant sauce | 102 | |
| Lemon granitas with verbena | 104 | |
| Orange-and-lemon cakes | 104 | |
| Bedside Dinners | 107 | |
| Tiny fish-roe treats | 108 | |
| Smoked-salmon temaki with avocado and dill cream | 110 | |
| Champagne cocktail with raspberries | 112 | |
| Prawns with green chili pepper paste | 112 | |
| Chicken soup with shitake mushrooms and ginger | 115 | |
| Pasta with cepes and black truffles | 116 | |
| Cream of avocado with arugula and Tabasco | 118 | |
| Fresh figs, bresaola, and mascarpone | 120 | |
| Goat-cheese surprise with cherries and poppy seeds | 120 | |
| Tiny crab-and-asparagus custards | 122 | |
| Creme brulee with foie gras | 125 | |
| Pineapple with Szechuan pepper | 126 | |
| Chocolate mousse with candied ginger | 126 | |
| Springtime on the Terrace | 129 | |
| Large pasta shells with pesto and shrimp | 130 | |
| Cream of zucchini soup with tarragon | 133 | |
| Monkfish skewers with bay leaf, olive oil, and chili powder | 134 | |
| Three-color tapas | 137 | |
| Salmon carpaccio with pink peppercorns | 138 | |
| Beef salad with lemongrass | 138 | |
| Spring-vegetable tart | 141 | |
| Green asparagus rolled in Parma ham and Parmesan | 142 | |
| Pork tenderloin with herb vinaigrette and baked potato puffs | 145 | |
| Pink-grapefruit cocktail | 146 | |
| Cheese and hazelnut puffs | 146 | |
| Stuffed pears with red berries, pistachios, and pear liqueur | 148 | |
| Strawberry soup with mascarpone and pink sugar | 150 | |
| Index | 153 | |
| Acknowledgments | 155 |
Overview
An accomplished French cook offers 80 classic recipes to be prepared or tasted as a couple. "The love of food, when it is shared, is conducive to a blissful love life." —Brillat-Savarin, 18th-century French writer and epicurean Anticipating pleasures of the table with a loved one only heightens the delights in cooking together—particularly because cooking and eating are two delicious steps on "the way to the heart." Paquin offers 80 classic recipes to be prepared or tasted as a couple, according to the ...