The Trellis Cookbook: Contemporary American Cooking in Williamsburg, Virginia

After dining at the Trellis Restaurant I had to have the cookbook that contained some of the recipes I had eaten there. What a wonderful place to have been and now I can somewhat enjoy the recipes in my own kitchen. Thanks to the chef.

I'm a real fan of Desaulniers. His stuff is solid, well-done and sophisticated in style and taste, but not beyond the abilities of most of us at home. In fact, he targets this stuff for us, even testing on our kind of equipment.This is another of those seasonal approaches, with recipes and menus provided for the four seasons. Helpful in each recipe is an equipment list as well as my favorite: The Chef's Touch in which he adds advice about preparation and/or service or background on how this dish came about, or substitutions one might use, etc. Basics on equipment, techniques and sources are included.You can tell that care is taken to aid us who put his talents and creations to use in our own homes. Particularly out of this collection do I enjoy serving the Braised Tenderloin of Beef with Mushrooms, Raisins, Figs and Red Wine.

First, I admit I used to work at the Trellis for 3 years and loved it. I have the hardcover version of this book but am contemplating getting the paperback just for the gazpacho recipe. Nice recipes and I like Marcel's "Chef's Touch." Some of the best desserts you will ever taste, great breads, and nice game recipes. They might be for the more adventurous and might be a bit time consuming, so my advice is to take a trip to Williamsburg and taste the real thing!