A Return to Cooking

Summer: Sag Harbor
A Return to Cooking
How the Chef Becomes a Cook
The Cast
First Night
The Saucier
The Power of the Vinaigrette
Soup or Sauce?
Day Trip
The Poissonier
Still Lifes…
Beach Picnic
Summer’s End
“Be a Chef and You Can Be Anything”

Winter: Puerto Rico
A Spiritual Journey
Flame for the Cooking Spirits
Cooking the Landscape
West Indies Improv
Like Turning on Ice
El Chillo
Jazz
Tropical Comfort
Caribbean Conversions
Puerto Rico Poissonier
Toward the Center of the Cook

Spring: Napa
Bounty
Bounty, Beauty, and Vastness
The Obligations of Lunch
Napa Menu
On Poaching
The Exotic
How Not to Cook
On Sautéing
Raw (or Almost Raw)
On Seasoning
On Roasting
The Cook as Pâtissier
The Craftman’s Hands…

Autumn: Vermont
The Source of Heat
The Return of the Chef
Truffle Fugue
Close to the Fire
Ambient Heat
A Chef’s Process
New House, New Style
Venison
Soup-Sauce Meditation
A Perfect Meal
When Cooking Achieves the Level of Art