October 10, 2008, Newsletter Issue #123: Simple French Cooking

Tip of the Week

One of the best meals I have ever had involved homemade French bread and homemade French Onion Soup. It was delicious! It’s amazing how a simple dinner menu can be so impressive. Remember that the next time you’ve got guests coming and you’re frantic about what to cook for supper. Trying to do too much in a short period of time is a recipe for disaster, so relax. If you’ve taken amateur cooking classes through culinary schools like the French Culinary Institute, you’ll already know how to prepare the foundations for most recipes: stocks and broths. Having some on hand makes it as easy as popping a frozen block from the freezer, defrosting, and adding the ingredients to make a casserole, marinate steak, or complete a French Onion Soup recipe.

The trick is to have the basics on hand at all times. That way, when you find out that guests are arriving for supper (and it’s already four o’clock!) you won’t be reduced to opening canned beans. It’s okay to mix food choices too. Maybe you’ve got two or three types of bread left in the house, but not really enough of any one to serve a loaf. No problem! Cut the bread up in chunks and serve it in a bowl with some dipping oil. If you’ve got frozen French cuisine in your freezer, pop it out, defrost in the microwave, and set it all out on the table. Create a mini buffet for your guests to serve themselves. Instead of them leaving your house thinking you weren’t prepared and didn’t have anything made, they’ll think you’re a genius for coming up with such a great idea in such a short period of time.

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