Alain Ducasse Nature: Simple, Healthy, and Good - Tapa dura

"While Adour Alain Ducasse awaits the appointment of a new full-time head chef, its menu is getting a slight tweak. Beginning tomorrow, the restaurant's vegetarian tasting menu will be replaced with a health-focused "Nature" menu that will coincide with the recent release Ducasse's new book, Alain Ducasse Nature: Simple, Healthy, and Good. The five-course menu will run you $85 (same price as the vegetarian menu), with wine pairings going for an extra $85. It will be available through April. Take a first look, straight ahead." New York Magazine "Health-minded cookbooks can have a whiff of self-righteousness--or be just plain bland. And those penned by Michelin-star-rated chefs can prove intimidating. Somehow, Alain Ducasse's Nature: Simple, Healthy and Good is neither. Published first in France, the gorgeous book--thanks in part to adorable sketches by Christine Roussey--actually made us hungry." Wall Street Journal "Skillfully illustrated by Christine Roussey, the book follows the bespectacled Ducasse, his nutritionist cowriter Paule Neyrat, and Plaza Ath n e head chef Christophe Saintagne as they take a conversational tour through an elaborate vegetable patch. And though bucolic, Nature never lets go of Ducasse's signature finesse, bringing you inspired takes on produce, such as vegetables la barigoule with vanilla." Vogue "In his new book Nature: Simple, Healthy and Good, inspired by a series he's published in French, Ducasse's recipes are built on ingredients that are both nutritional and flavor powerhouses: whole grains, seafood, and nutrient-dense vegetables. If any chef can make healthy dishes taste divine, it's Ducasse." Epicurious.com

Michelin-starred chef Alain Ducasse challenges the clich d image of French food as complicated and heavy. Here he goes back to basics and rediscovers the pleasures of simple French food based on healthy, locally sourced ingredients that are in season, without the fat and without the fuss. The book features charming line drawings and mouthwatering food photography by one of France's most acclaimed food photographers. Sidebars and asides containing useful snippets of Ducasse's experience and advice are peppered throughout. With over 190 simple yet sublime dishes, Ducasse highlights a wide range of flavor combinations in which vegetables, fruits, and grains take pride of place, while animal protein is used sparingly for flavor. Ducasse casts aside preconceived notions of French food to reveal its essence--seasonal produce, fresh flavors, and hearty, healthy dishes meant to be shared with friends and family.