Top 100, Continued

6. The Green's Cookbook by Deborah Madison and Edward Espe Brown. This was given to me as a birthday gift 15 years ago, when I was a vegetarian. The recipes are so original and interesting that it continues to inspire me, even though I'm a meat eater again. This cookbook also offers good advice on wine pairing.

7. Bittersweet Bakery and Bistro in Spokane, Washington. I'm a bit biased on this one. It is owned by one of my dearest friends, Gina Garcia. I've never eaten here, as it opened after we moved to France, but I know her cooking from the bakery she had before it evolved into a Bistro and Bakery. She came to France to do training (and to visit us) before opening the Bistro and from what I've heard from friends and family, it is fabulous! The bakery still offers pastries and desserts and she has added savory crêpes and salads to the menu. There is a crêpe Loulou on the menu, named after your's truly!

Bittersweet Bakery and Bistro
1220 S. Grand Blvd.
Spokane, WA
(509) 455-8658

8. Emile Henry Loaf Pan Coated with a high resistant glaze, it goes from the fridge to the oven to the table and looks good too!

9. Harissa. A paste or sauce from Tunisia, but also used in Morocco and other parts of North Africa. It is made with chile's, garlic and spices and used to flavor couscous, tagines and soups.
Very spicy! A little goes a long way.

10. Homemade Apple Sauce. So much better than in the jar and ridiculously easy to make.

• 2 pounds (1 kilo) cooking apples
• 2 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoon light brown sugar (or more depending on which apples you use)
• 3 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

Peel and core the apples and cut them into large chunks. Put the apples and the water into a heavy saucepan over medium heat and cover. When it starts to boil, turn the heat down to low, stir and cover. Cook about 30 minutes until soft but still in chunks. Stir in the sugar and lemon juice, cover and cook another 10 minutes to let the flavors blend. Enjoy!

11. Chef Ron Siegel. I was fortunate enough to train under this amazing chef. I continue to follow his career from his Iron Chef victory in 1999 to his current "Salt and Pepper Tasting Menu" offered at the Ritz Carlton in San Francisco, where he has been head chef since 2004. If you're ever in San Francisco, you must try his food, it is sublime.

12. al Mercat de la Boqueria in Barcelona. Also called Mercat Sant Josep, it occupies 6000 square meters in the middle of La Rambla, Barcelona's main thoroughfare and best known landmark. I love food markets and la Boqueria is one of the best. It is truly a feast for the senses! It is the oldest of it's kind in Europe and it has some of the most bizarre looking seafood and produce I've ever seen. Settle yourself in at one of the numerous tapas bars and soak up the atmosphere.

13. Hooked on Heat blog. Meena's blog is a great read and full of delicious recipes. What more could I ask for?

14. Savoy Cabbage. Very versatile, great flavor and beautiful to look at.

15. Cheese Primer by Steven Jenkins. A French proverb holds there is a different French cheese for every day of the year, and Charles de Gaulle once asked "how can you govern a country in which there are 246 kinds of cheese?" Currently, the French cheese count is over 400 varieties. We've tried maybe 60 of them and the Cheese Primer has been indispensable when buying cheeses at the market. It also covers Spain, Italy, Switzerland, the British Isles, the U.S. and several other countries.
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