French

The man who made vegetarian cooking cool shares his secrets for celebrating summer on the plate.

Alain Passard, the visionary chef of the Michelin-starred Paris restaurant L’Arpège, rules both farm and table. He shares his secrets for celebrating summer on the plate.

This sandwich gets better and better the longer it sits (okay, to a point); assemble it after breakfast and eat it when you’ve worked up an appetite.

Customize it: Use carrot instead of celery root and any other white bean (gigante, cannellini) you like.

Medium-low heat is the key to the fluffy, creamy, melty texture of these scrambled eggs. We like to serve them when they’re still runny, but keep them on the stove for another 15 seconds if you prefer them completely set. This is part of BA's Best, a collection of our essential recipes. Learn how to make this recipe and more in our online cooking class with Sur la Table.

Prolific and influential cookbook author, Paula Wolfert, is a true adventurer, in and out of the kitchen. We spoke to Wolfert to learn more about the Kickstarter for her new biography-combo-cookbook, Unforgettable.

Is this caramel cream-puff skyscraper a showstopper? Yes. Is it a major-league project? Yes! Here’s the strategy: Make the puffs and the pastry cream a couple of days in advance, then tackle assembly on the morning of the day you plan to serve this.

The water bath insulates these custards from the dry heat of the oven to ensure a lush, creamy custard.

If you like darker chocolate, feel free to use something with a high percentage of cacao here. Milk chocolate works too, if that’s your thing.

This elegant stew can be made up to the point that the farro goes in; cool, then cover and chill up to 2 days.

We love making this take on a niçoise salad with mâche instead of traditional frisée for a slightly more mellowed recipe.

You’re not going to get this right the first time. After five, maybe six attempts, you’ll start to feel like a pro.

The éclairs will begin to get soggy as soon as they are filled, so be sure to wait until just before you're ready to make the chocolate fondant to add the pastry cream.

When properly baked, the puffs should have a firm but not crusty exterior, and a moist but airy center.

We love the color and texture you get from using a combination, but any single root vegetable can be used here, too.

As if you need another reason to make this madeleine recipe for dessert: The batter can be prepped the day before.

If you don’t have a kitchen torch, time to treat yourself. They’re inexpensive and super fun to use—and you can’t make this dessert without one.

This salad was inspired by the classic French bistro salad, in which sturdy winter greens are laced with crisp lardons of bacon and a silky poached egg. We’ll never begrudge you a bit of bacon, but here vegetables are roasted to give the salad a leaner form of texture, flavor, and color.

The gelatin in the mousse stabilizes it, so you can make and fill the roll a day ahead without worrying about it weeping or deflating.

Don’t strive for perfection with these. The more irregular and off-kilter they are, the more realistic they look. ​

The effort-to-impressiveness ratio doesn’t get much better than this, people. Go ahead and double (Triple! Quadruple!) this recipe and you’ve got hostess gifts, emergency entertaining fodder, and quick, decadent snacks for days.

Some great things are made with day-old bread: French toast. Croutons. Breadcrumbs. Add this nutty and sugary French pastry from Maurice to the list.

Chef John Fleer, Rhubarb, Asheville, NC, and his family enjoy indoor picnics with brandade (made here with a shortcut: smoked trout) and store-bought fixings. “We just sit on the floor and chat and chew,” he says.

For those who love savory snacks. A sprinkling of torn basil wouldn’t hurt, either.