French Cooking for One

‘An enduring delight for readers and cooks alike.’ - Nigella Lawson ‘This slender volume insists that food for one should be simple yet delicious. Drawing on memories of her French grandmother’s cookery, Roberts’ recipes are elegant and - mostly - quick to prepare: celeriac croquettes, trout with almonds, or sausages with apples and cider. A delightful little book.’ - Constance Craig Smith, Daily Mail Best Cookery Books for Christmas ‘To make a proper supper for yourself is, after all, a kind and tender thing to do if you’re under pressure - and [Roberts’] book contains only recipes for one person. For the absence of doubt, however, I must stress it isn’t the kind of manual that has you making lasagne, to be frozen in individual portions. The dishes included are at once more simple and more luxurious than that. Mussel salad with ravigote sauce. Rabbit with mustard. Steak with bordelaise sauce. So many micro feasts, and every one of them nourishment for body and soul. (…) [Roberts’ book is] edged like an old tablecloth with the spirit of her maternal grandparents’ kitchen as well as her own domestic expertise. Most of the recipes, short and uncomplicated, aim to deliver the perfect effort-to-taste ratio; if she has an Elizabeth David-like briskness on the page, she’s also a sensualist, a part-time sybarite. But even if you’re not in the mood for cooking, simply to read them is to encourage rumination. She is such a noticing writer, and in her hands you find yourself doing the same, a dowdy cauliflower suddenly beautiful, a slab of marbled meat a world unto itself.’ - Rachel Cooke, Observer Food Monthly ‘Michele Roberts’ enchanting new book proves la cuisine francaise can be enjoyed alone, when there is nothing to interrupt the joy of preparing good ingredients and turning them into enticing dishes. Her anecdotes and notes of wisdom that accompany the recipes make her the perfect companion in the kitchen.’ - Carolyn Boyd, author of Amuse Bouche ‘What makes this cookbook stand out from the crowd of publications extolling French culinary culture is the way in which is combines gastronomy and memoir. Roberts’ voice is clear and authoritative and she clearly excels at what Grimod de la Reyniere referred to as “the art of eating well”. The recipes cater to home cooks of all levels, making French cuisine approachable for anyone, describing dishes that are prepared in homes across France every day. She captures the love of French cooking, and its blend of common sense and sensual pleasure. French cooking is about nurturing the soul with home-cooked meals, and that philosophy is evident throughout.’ - Georgia de Chamberet, BookBlast

See also Michele Roberts interviewed by Lauren Elkin for Vittles Magazine

A former food columnist for the New Statesman, Michele Roberts has always written about food and cookery in her novels and short stories. Half-French and half-English, she learned to cook at her grandparents’ home in Normandy. She is the author of 15 acclaimed novels, including Daughters of the House (shortlisted for the Booker Prize). She is Emeritus Professor of Creative Writing at the University of East Anglia, a Chevalier de l’ordre des arts et des lettres and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. As a republican, she turned down an OBE in 2003.