Roger VergT's first memories were of the tiny spring vegetables grown by his father. Former proprietor of the world famous Moulin de Mougins in the south of France near Cannes, a restaurant with two stars in the Michelin guide, he was not content to leave vegetables where they are so often consigned by classical French cuisine--as a garnish to accompany meats or fish--but explored all their culinary possibilities. The result is Roger VergT's Vegetables in the French Style, a tribute to his love affair with vegetables. It contains 150 recipes for sauces, soups, salads, gratins, terrines, and other ways of bringing out the natural goodness of high-quality produce. Recipe headnotes and sidebars add scores of exciting cooking and serving ideas, encouraging improvisation. Section introductions provide important advice on how to choose the best vegetables in the market. An extensive appendix details the classic methods of vegetable cookery--poaching, sweating, braising, frying, and baking--as well as today's favored methods--steaming, stir-frying, and grilling. One hundred color photographs show elegant and simple finished dishes as well as succulent fresh vegetables. This beautiful book is the result of French master chef Verge's passion for vegetables. He begins with an entire chapter devoted to sauces specifically for vegetables and then moves on to Sun-Drenched Vegetables, Vegetables of the Earth, Vegetables from Afar, and more. Some of the 150 recipes, many illustrated with full-page color photographs, are Verge's version of classic French, particularly Provencal, dishes; others are homey, grandmere-style food; and still others are unusual and innovative dishes, such as stylish Turnip Cakes with Cardamom. Recommended for most collections. Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. One of France's most famous chefs features 150 vegetable recipes in this beautifully illustrated collection. Divided by types of vegetables, from sun-drenched to green to earth-bound to exotic, his book offers a good selection of plain and fancy dishes. More than a few are high in fat and calories, yet all will please the palate. As a daily shopper at fresh markets in Provence and environs, he tempers his poetry of the kitchen with some equally elegant prose about various vegetables--"everyone who grows potatoes is a treasure hunter at heart." Barbara Jacobs Roger Verge's Vegetables in the French Style contains 150 recipes for sauces, soups, salads, gratins, terrines, and other ways of bringing out the natural goodness of high-quality produce. Recipe headnotes and sidebars add scores of exciting cooking and serving ideas, encouraging improvisation. Section introductions provide important advice on how to choose the best vegetables in the market. An extensive appendix details the classic methods of vegetable cookery (poaching, sweating, braising, frying, and baking) as well as today's favored methods (steaming, stir-frying, and grilling). One hundred beautiful color photographs show elegant and simple finished dishes as well as succulent fresh vegetables. -- Midwest Book Review Roger Verge's Vegetables in the French Style is a collection of vegetable recipes that sing with the flavors, colors, and aromas of Provence. Although the classic French culinary tradition frequently consigns vegetables to a supporting role--as an accompaniment or garnish to meat or fish--Roger Verge, proprietor of the world famous Moulin de Mougins restaurant in the south of France near Cannes, has loved them since he can remember--in fact his first memories are of the tiny spring vegetables grown by his father. Roger Verge's Vegetables in the French Style is not a treatise on vegetarianism--although vegetarians will find many enticing recipes in this book--or a collection of restrictive recipes for dieting. It contains 150 recipes for sauces, soups, salads, gratins, terrines, and other ways of bringing out the natural goodness of high-quality produce--from an earthy Eggplant Gratin to elegant Scrambled Eggs with Asparagus and Truffles; from traditional Braised Leeks to the exotic Jamaican Roasted Pumpkin; from Potato, Artichoke, and Olive Salad to Carrot Cake with Apricots (a tasty dessert). Recipe headnotes and sidebars add scores of exciting cooking and serving ideas, encouraging improvisation, and Verge also suggests the perfect wine to serve with each dish. Section introductions provide advice on how to choose the best vegetables in the market. An extensive appendix details the classic methods of vegetable cookery--poaching, sweating, braising, frying, or baking--as well as today's favored methods--steaming, stir-frying, and grilling. One hundred color photographs show elegant and simple finished dishes as well as succulent fresh vegetables. Roger Verge's Vegetables in the French Style is a collection of vegetable recipes that sing with the flavors, colors, and aromas of Provence. Although the classic French culinary tradition frequently consi