The Cook and the Gardener is Amanda Hesser's first book. From the opening lines of its introduction, her literary gifts are as evident as her passion for good food. Since this work combines recipes with her essays about Monsieur Milbert (the gardener at the Chateau du Fey in Burgundy, where Hesser worked as the cook), readers get to enjoy both of her talents. Hesser worked hard to get M. Milbert to talk with her. She shares the careful, deliberate way she wooed him
This is a year-round salad. The ribbons of carrot curl and tangle together, wrapping around the fragrance of the garlic and bay. Note that this salad needs at least 8 hours to marinate.
Serves 4
6 to 8 medium carrots (about 3/4 to 1 pound), trimmed and peeled
Sea salt
2 bay leaves
1 clove garlic
Coarse or kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
About 1/3 cup good-quality olive oil
Fill a medium saucepan with water, season with salt, and bring the water to a boil. Meanwhile, prepare the carrots: Pinching the wide end of a carrot between your fingers or holding it down with a fork, use a vegetable peeler to peel along the length of the carrot from the wide end to the narrow end -- you'll get more out of the carrot by peeling in this direction. Peel one strip, then turn the carrot over so it has a flat side to rest on and peel from the other side. You will end up with long wide strips, which should be thin enough to wrap around your thumb without snapping. Continue peeling until you can no longer make nice wide strips. Save the stub of carrot for stock. Peel all of the carrots in this manner.
When the water comes to a full boil, pile the carrot strips into the water in handfuls and stir so that they all fit in the water. Bring the water back to a boil and cook for 1 to 2 minutes, until the carrot strips have relaxed slightly but are still crisp (they should just break when pinched); their color should intensify.
Have a bowl of cold water ready. Drain the carrots and plunge them into the cold water to stop the cooking. Drain again, then lay the strips loosely on a dish towel so they dry thoroughly. If they are at all wet when it's time to pour the oil over them, they will repel the oil.
In a medium mixing bowl, combine the carrots, bay leaves, and garlic. Taste a carrot. If you put enough sea salt in the boiling water, you will not need to season them any further, but if not, season with both salt and freshly ground black pepper. Pour the olive oil over them and toss gently to mix.
Press the carrots down so they are compacted together and well dressed with oil. Press a piece of plastic wrap down onto them. Refrigerate and let marinate for at least 8 hours. Before serving, let the salad sit at room temperature for about 30 minutes so the olive oil loosens up. Then toss to mix once more and taste for seasoning. Transfer to a serving bowl and use a fork to lift and fluff the ribbons of carrot. Discard the garlic. The bay leaves, however, should be made visible -- for "eye appeal." If you are lucky enough to have a bay tree, why not arrange the salad on top of a bed of bay leaves on a simple flat white plate?
