I could have listened forever |
A little bit of French |
Marketing photo |
At Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons he grows most of the food that is served in the restaurant and he talks about the respect you pay to the food that you grow yourself. Prepare it simple and don't mess with perfection that nature provides so freely (and here I fell utterly in love).... I didn't need to pull information from him - he shared his love for food with me and I didn't interrupt him. It was inspiring just listening to him.
When asked if he would like his two sons to join him in the business, he shook his head saying that he has been sent many children of famous chefs to work and learn in his kitchen and he could see that they didn't really want to do it and started hating food and cooking. He didn't want this for his own children. They are free to join if they decide to do so but he is not influencing them at all. His love and pride for his sons comes through when he talks about Olivier who has developed an application to bring children closer to understanding food and preparation of same. Henry le Worm is an interactive game-like application that encourages children, and adults, to connect with food and nature. Needless to say that I downloaded it from the AppleStore to get Mr T's little granddaughter into cooking. The application costs €4.49 and can be downloaded from the AppleStore for iPad and iPhone. Henri 'borrowed' his voice from actor Simon Pegg and recipes are of course provided by Raymond Blanc. It has reached #1 in UK in the Education Category and #1 in The Guardian's Top 20 Weekly best application for iPad & iPhone.
Reading through his cookbooks (I got my second Raymond Blanc cookbook 'Kitchen Secrets' on the day and he signed it for me), he refers a lot to his childhood and the food that his mother, Maman Blanc' cooked for the family. Her love for feeding her family good food is what he tries to bring back and a lot of his recipes are based on his mother's cooking. I love the personal touch and that he shares his childhood memories - really have to try the Pain Perdu (his version of French Toast or Lost Bread) that his mother used to make (an updated version with brioche rather than old bread). Since I go back to childhood memories when I think of old dinner traditions, I love that he too does it - it proves that you don't have to re-invent the wheel, just prepare good food and the rest is simple.
Raymond Blanc's Cookware |
I am in total awe of this chef and wish him success on his next ventures - where ever it may takes him.
Raymond Blanc was at Meadows & Byrne in Blarney to launch his new cookware, organised by Revolve Marketing & PR.
Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons
Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons
Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons
Le Manoir aux Quat'Saisons
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