This is a book for cooks not chefs. It is warm hearted and user friendly and inspirational. It draws on the fine skill and love of food of a chef but translates the recipe in to something real and human for a cook. The ingredients lists are beautifully short. The pictures gorgeous. The rythym of the book follows the rythym of the seasons.

Alex Mackay has a real understanding of food and provencal food but is never academic or obsessional in approach. Each recipe is given space and a meaningful introduction.

It is in essence a book of relatively simple recipes but each with a true and unique provencal flavour. I have so far enjoyed the Onion Tian - a kind of onion pie which where the onions are braised and baked for hours until they are meltingly gorgeous. Also mushrooms with chestnuts in red wine as a first course with crusty french bread - which took all of 4 minutes to prepare but look and tasted superb. Daube Nicoise - the regional equivalent of Boef Bourginon - which was a triumph: I used very cheap cuts of stewing steak (to save money) and simmered at 95 degrees in the oven for many hours (with the orange peel and black olives for true provencal flavour) and the result was tender melting and delicious beef, in fact a dinner party for 6 for a about 5 of beef.

The book is not at all about being parsimonious - quite the opposite. But it is a delight to make wonderful food for pence because each cut of meat, or ordinary vegetable is valued and treated with creativity.

A delightful book that knows its subject, is a pleasure to use and actually encourages and inspires one to cook the recipes in it. Also a wonderful coffee table book if you're in to that sort of thing.


summer sunshine   May 25, 2003
 11 out of 12 found this review helpful

For those who can't afford a trip to Alex Mackay's wonderful cooking school in Provence, this is the next best thing. Alex once ran the cooking school at the Manoir aux Quatres Saisons, and now has his own near San Tropez. He is a born teacher, and his infectious enthusiasm and sense of humour come through clearly in the book. A treasure trove of Provencal recipes, the book is graced by the extraordinary photography of Peter Knab. Food porn, and on top of that, the carefully devised recipes will encourage you to experiment, and allow you to recreate the savours and smells of a glorious corner of the world. This book has my highest recommendation.


a delight to all the senses   March 13, 2003
 21 out of 25 found this review helpful

Anyone expecting this to be just a terrific Provencal cookbook is in for a very pleasant surprise. Alex Mackay's mastery of french cuisine has become almost a given, especially for those who have had the chance to sample his work in Britain or on the continent. What surprises most about this new book is the incredible richness and depth of the recipes and the vibrant photographic textures of Peter Knab. One need not be a master chef like Alex to indulge in the delicious imagery of this book.

More than just a cookbook, this is just as much a carefully guided and informed tour into the culinary heart and soul of Provence. Peter Knab takes the book far beyond the kitchen, to the fields and overflowing family gatherings of the sun-drenched region.

Finding this book in the dead of an otherwise dreary winter provided a delightful escape to what seems a better place and time. I can't help but think that Alex Mackay's classic recipes, once attempted, will get us closer still.