Fresh from the Market: Seasonal Cooking with Laurent Tourondel

Author of Bistro Laurent Tourondel as well as founder of 10 BLT restaurants around the globe, Tourondel provides an appetizing and handsome guide to taking advantage of nature's gifts. Highlighting recipes from his childhood, early days as a chef, and the menu of New York's BLT Market, he offers appetizer, main course, dessert, and breakfast meals that capitalize on availability and freshness. Spring's offerings include poached white asparagus with ramp béarnaise; halibut en papillote with fava beans and green garlic; and a frittata with peas, ramps, sausage, and goat cheese. Summer, fall, and winter bounties are equally tantalizing with grilled pizzettas made with littleneck clams and bacon; aromatic stuffed suckling pig; and honey-crisp apple cakes with pumpkin spice ice cream. While some recipes are complex, most are easily handled by home cooks. Tourondel provides menus for holiday celebrations like Easter, Memorial Day, and Christmas Eve, as well as a section on basics such as stocks and a wealth of flavored ice creams and sorbets, including lime-cottage cheese and almond milk. When "seasonal" is more and more popular, Tourondel makes a valuable contribution to this expanding field. (Sept.)