"Cooking for Mr. Latte" by Amanda Hesser

[Cusina]

I tried again with the peach tart. Amanda called on Friday. We talked for about 15 minutes, sorting through the issues I had with the recipe and coming up with a few solutions. I really enjoyed chatting with her. It's obvious that she knows what she's talking about and has an enthusiasm for and knowledge of food in general, peach tart in specific. Plus, you know, it's not every day that I chat it up with a NY Times editor. (My Wisconsin friends were impressed with this story.) I wish I had a personal response like this all the time to recipes. It was like cooking with a coach.

I'm so glad I perservered. The final product was outstanding. All around the table, kids and grown ups really enjoyed the tart. I changed a few things at Amanda's suggestion. First, the crust. I think my conceptualization of it was wrong. I wanted it to be a standard pie crust and it just isn't. It's quite rich (made with olive oil and milk, and a little almond extract) and has a pebbled texture to it, almost like a textured shortbread. I think I didn't mix it well enough the first time around and it was too floury in the pan corners. This time I did the mixing in a bowl and then dumped it into the pan with much better results. I also feel that I had initally made the crust too thick. This time, in pressing it out, I was careful to make it thinner and discard the extra.

With the peaches, I only ended up using 3, as they were larger than usual and I didn't crowd the pan. I also added a full extra tablespoon of flour to the topping, which helped absorb the extra juice.

It was excellent; you should make this. It's simple, unpretentious and delicious. The texture is outstanding. I love the balance of the textured and rich crust with the smoothness and full flavor of the peaches.

I do think, however, that the biggest part of the problem my first time around is that I misread her intentions. I made it to travel. She states that this is a good recipe to travel with. That is true, it is an easy recipe to whip up when you are working with limited circumstances. However, the tart itself doesn't travel as well as it might. It is best eaten fresh, still warm even, if you can manage it.

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Yes, Jinmyo, I would make more of the recipes in this book, at least some of the ones that suit my life. I probably will take this book out again and try some more. I definitely plan to put the two that I did try into my regular rotation. They were great.

It strikes me as interesting that most of the critics of this book haven't actually cooked from it. When you get down to the recipes themselves, they are of good quality. In my opinion at least.

[Jinmyo]

That's great, Cusina, I'm glad to hear it.

And of course delighted that Amanda actuially went so far to work this out.

As for myself, I read recipes quite often but have never intentionally followed one.

[bloviatrix]

That's very cool. Sounds like you had a great experience.

Amanda frequently writes about how important is to have a sizable repetoire of recipes to have at your fingertips that you do well. Sounds like this one will join your collection.

[Cusina]

As for myself, I read recipes quite often but have never intentionally followed one.

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ahhh... that's great. What a cool thing. This topic is a thread unto itself.

I definitely can't say the same. I do use recipes, sometimes very faithfully, sometimes not so much. You need to be a fairly accomplished cook to wing it all the time. I like to cook with a lot more variety than I have experience, so I sometimes rely on others to fill in that part. I also enjoy word puzzles and logical challenges. Recipes appeal in that way. They are kind of like puzzles that need to be pieced together with 3D pieces. And that AHA moment can be so delicious.

[Jinmyo]

ahhh... that's great.  What a cool thing.  This topic is a thread unto itself. 

Oh no, not really.

I cook professionally for a select clientele (reservations and other special criteria) with a small staff. Usually for from 10 to 40 people, though in the past I've done hundreds of plates a night for more regular restaurants and then catering for a bit.

So one goes by such learned criteria as proportions and rather than by formulas. The only thing I cannot really tell about how something will taste by smelling it is salt levels. And also when I've gone over the top by exploring a theme such as tuiles beyond where anyone else could be interested.

With traditional ethnic cuisines, I cook as much as is possible within that context down to the instruments and oils used. But I also like to make new dishes and in general very rarely serve even the same sequence of dishes unless it is necessarily a fixed traditional set such as gohan/miso shiru/gari and takuan. Otherwise it is always new in some sense that is important to me.

We have our own in-house bakery for which recipes are essential. And while a very long time ago I served as assistant head baker and head baker at a few places, I in general loathe that way of doing things though I understand it and can ceratainly appreciate the results.

So, back to the book: What other recipes interest you? (This will serve to alert Amanda so she can rally resources, if needed, at her leisure.)

[Cusina]

The Julia Child chapter, roquefort balls, daube du boef and charlotte basque, looks amazing. I'd love to try the whole menu sometime. I love pouring over Julia's work, but haven't made much of it. And the chapter about Elizabeth (her mother-in-law). It starts with Dories Red Lion cocktail (which sounds girly and fun, I might make it for a night with friends). Then there is ginger duck and rice cooked in it's broth, shredded carrots and parsnips and it finishes with an almond cake. This whole meal sounds great to me too. I think it would be fun to make for my parents as a treat sometime. My mom loves duck.

Both menus are rich enough to be real celebration dinners though. I need to wait for the appropriate situation.

[Cusina]

The Julia Child chapter, roquefort balls, daube du boef and charlotte basque, looks amazing. I'd love to try the whole menu sometime. I love pouring over Julia's work, but haven't made much of it. And the chapter about Elizabeth (her mother-in-law). It starts with Dories Red Lion cocktail (which sounds girly and fun, I might make it for a night with friends). Then there is ginger duck and rice cooked in it's broth, shredded carrots and parsnips and it finishes with an almond cake. This whole meal sounds great to me too. I think it would be fun to make for my parents as a treat sometime. My mom loves duck.

Both menus are rich enough to be real celebration dinners though. I need to wait for the appropriate situation.

[hannahcooks]

I can also recommend the lemon risotto with cream. I pulled out this book again this weekend after reading this thread and tried the risotto with pork chops, and it was incredible (though next time I think I'll use more lemon zest). My husband had three servings...

[sassybat]

i also really liked the white bolognese when i tried it. i can also recommend the ginger duck, but it should only be tried if you're not planning on leaving the house for several hours, since you need to turn the duck every hour or so.

i've been wanting to try the watercress puree she mentions somewhere in the book, but i don't have a food processor. maybe this can be the excuse i need....

Edited September 27, 2004 by sassybat (log)

[hannahcooks]

i've been wanting to try the watercress puree she mentions somewhere in the book, but i don't have a food processor. maybe this can be the excuse i need....

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Not to ruin a good excuse to buy a food processor, but I've made that watercress and pea puree successfully with a blender. However, I much prefer a version from the French Chef cookbook, which is more or less the same, but with chicken stock instead of water.

[Cusina]

Hannah, what did you serve the puree with? Is it more of a soupy texture or a light mashed potato kind of thing?

[hannahcooks]

Hannah, what did you serve the puree with?  Is it more of a soupy texture or a light mashed potato kind of thing?

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It's not quite as thick as mashed potatoes but not soupy either- I've served it with roast chicken and with lamb chops.

[hillvalley]

I picked Mr. Latte up at a local used book store today because I had heard about it here. I fit perfectly into the targeted demographics, late 20's, single, female, food lover, reader, etc. This will become one of those books I pick up when I need an easy, fun, mindless read. Any book I can read in a few sittings and enjoy is well worth it.

That being said, I have now developed a new neurosis because of her. I hope to cook my first meal for my Mr. Latte, aka the dining companion, very soon. He already is a foodie and will notice every detail. (He would never ever use Equal.)

I hadn't really worried about what I was going to make, figuring he would just be pleased with a home cooked meal. After reading her first few chapters I am now going to start going through my cookbooks to find the perfect meal which won't be too hard to screw up!

[Liz B-F]

I read a library copy of Cooking for Mr. Latte a month or so ago, before I'd found eGullet, and I wrote a bitter little note on it in my journal ["The precious, self-conscious Mr. Latte book astonishes me with its hoariness. Are there really women my own age living on the Upper East Side (West side?), dating, wearing barrettes, cooking meat with cream sauces, and shuffling home from frequent, early-ending dinner parties with their Tupperware tucked into those little old lady pushcarts? And if so, why would a semi-known writer ever date one of these women, when the ultra-competitive New York singles scene is filled with Aisha Tyler types who run around in bikinis watching football and ordering room-service beer at various W hotels?"]

Today I've enjoyed reading several of the Mr. Latte threads on eGullet, and--for me--I wasn't so much bothered by Hesser's self-conscious winsomeness (which I read as tongue-in-cheek)...it was more that the book was such a throwback that it read as a sort of spoof of Fisher or other food writing of past generations.

I can see why some readers found the book charming, but to me, it never quite rang true enough...even the moments of apparent personal revelation always seemed really retro...the Forsterish conflicts with older female relatives in Italy, the fragile mother-in-law bonding (reminiscent of Madeleine L'Engle's adult novels from the 50s and 60s), the stoic friendships and quiet, plodding coupling. It seemed so firmly set in yesteryear. I might've read it differently had I not known what era it was supposed to be set in...minus the airplane scenes or 9/11, I would've assumed someone of Shirley Hazzard's generation had written it...then again, I tend to think really great writing (even on a fun, frivolous theme) sells itself even if it challenges my suppositions.