Four-star French and all-star American

REVIEWS BY SYBIL PRATT

Julius Caesar divided Gaul into three parts, but Gallic gastronome extraordinaire and renowned restaurateur Daniel Boulud divides his culinary territory into four. The world according to Daniel consists of "La Tradition," the classic, full-flavored foods of France; "La Saison," seasonal specialties; "Le Voyage," great flavors from other lands; and "Le Potager," vegetarian dishes that sing with the goodness of the garden. The menu in his superb new restaurant is divided into these four sections, as are the recipes in his superb, lusciously illustrated new cookbook, Daniel Boulud's Cafe Boulud Cookbook: French-American Recipes for the Home Cook, written with Dorie Greenspan, who makes the haute cuisine scene truly accessible for the home cook.

Monsieur Boulud is an elegant cook, and elegance can take time, patience, and attention to detail. That detail is given here in the carefully composed preparation and serving instructions and in the exemplary introductory notes for each recipe. Elegant though he is, Daniel encourages us to take a relaxed approach to the 200 plus recipes, inviting us to skip around in his quartet of categories -- taking a starter from one, a main dish from another, a dessert from a third -- and even to vary the components of the recipes themselves. For a fabulous holiday meal, you might want to serve an earthy, inviting Chestnut, Celery Root, and Apple Soup from "La Saison" before Short Ribs Braised in Red Wine from "La Tradition," and finish the feast with Francois Payard's White Chocolate and Banana Tartlets from "Le Voyage." Picking and choosing within recipes, I've served the peppery Spiced Skirt Steak from one recipe combo with a mellow Parsnip-Potato Puree from another with much success, and made the summer-scented Fresh Berry Marmalade and the honeyed Peach Compote without the divine little cakes they're paired with, saving a few precious calories to squander on the lovely, layered Chocolate Mousse Trio.

Don't look for low-fat quickies in this opulent array, but do look for dishes that will add pizzazz to your repertoire and give your lucky guests good reason to raise a happy "hulla-Boulud" about your cooking.


Hamming it up

Real, dry-salt-cured country ham is a quintessential American delicacy -- whether it be smoked or unsmoked; aged for three, six, or ten months; cooked or uncooked; whole; halved; or processed in Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, or Virginia. James Beard proclaimed it "one of the most elegant of all American foods."

For those who grew up with country ham or discovered it later in life -- even for those poor, deprived souls who have never sampled its savory smell and sublime texture -- there's now a practical paean to this precious portion of pork. It's The Country Ham Book by Jeanne Voltz and Elaine J. Harvell, who both come from families where festive dinners are centered around cured hams from the farm.

Their appreciation begins with some background on pigs in the New World (the first came with Columbus and de Soto), moves on to the ancient art of curing and its Americanization (Smithfield hams from Virginia were exported back to England as early as 1639), and then gets into the basics of buying and cooking (the time-honored scrubbing, soaking, and simmering and the newer oven-steaming and slow-cooker methods). The treats and the trimmings follow, with over 70 recipes from super-traditional Redeye Gravy, Raisin Sauce, Creamy Grits, and Beaten Biscuits to chef-enhanced, special-occasion extravaganzas such as Wild Mushroom Strudel with Virginia Ham and Smoked Ham Salad Szechuan. A source list for country hams makes purchase possible no matter where you live, and Jeanne and Elaine's expert advice makes it possible for you to prepare and serve this extraordinary, edible, all-American heirloom.


Kitchen Junk:

Does a good yard sale send you swooning? Are you a flea market junkie? If so, Kitchen Junk by Mary Randolph Carter just might be your (vintage) cup of tea -- and it takes up a lot less space than if you'd bought all that cool kitchen junk yourself. Here Carter shows the limitless potential of secondhand items, from '50s toasters to checkered oven mitts, and offers shopping and cleaning tips.


Sybil Pratt is an avid cook.

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