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The Cook’s Atelier: Recipes, Techniques, and Stories from Our French Cooking School
An IACP Cookbook Award winner for Design and for Food Photography & Styling, the debut cookbook from The Cook’s Atelier—the international culinary destination and cooking school in Burgundy — is a beautifully photographed resource on classic French cuisine and an atmospheric chronicle of a family’s life in a charming French village.
Mother and daughter American expats Marjorie Taylor and Kendall Smith Franchini always dreamed of living in France. With a lot of hard work and a dash of fate, they realized this dream and cofounded The Cook’s Atelier, a celebrated French cooking school in the storybook town of Beaune, located in the heart of the Burgundy wine region. Combining their professional backgrounds in food and wine, they attract visitors from near and far with their approachable, convivial style of cooking.
Featuring more than 100 market-inspired recipes and 300 exceptional photographs by Anson Smart, this comprehensive reference is an extension of their cooking school, providing a refreshingly simple take on French techniques and recipes that every cook should basic butchery, essential stocks and sauces, pastry, dessert creams and sauces, and preserving, to name a few. Seasonal menus build on this foundation, collecting recipes that showcase their fresh, vegetable-focused versions of timeless French dishes, such Stories of food and life in the village and the unique atmosphere of the atelier accent this personal cookbook. We can almost hear the clanking of the copper pots, the hiss of the vintage espresso machine, and the merriment around the table, as we meet some of the region’s best small farmers and artisanal producers and experience how Taylor and Smith Franchini’s family work together to create this special place.
More than a practical introduction to classic French cooking, this richly illustrated volume is also a distinctively designed celebration of the French art of joie de vivre and an inspirational primer on adopting elements of the French lifestyle, no matter where you live.
Mother and daughter American expats Marjorie Taylor and Kendall Smith Franchini always dreamed of living in France. With a lot of hard work and a dash of fate, they realized this dream and cofounded The Cook’s Atelier, a celebrated French cooking school in the storybook town of Beaune, located in the heart of the Burgundy wine region. Combining their professional backgrounds in food and wine, they attract visitors from near and far with their approachable, convivial style of cooking.
Featuring more than 100 market-inspired recipes and 300 exceptional photographs by Anson Smart, this comprehensive reference is an extension of their cooking school, providing a refreshingly simple take on French techniques and recipes that every cook should basic butchery, essential stocks and sauces, pastry, dessert creams and sauces, and preserving, to name a few. Seasonal menus build on this foundation, collecting recipes that showcase their fresh, vegetable-focused versions of timeless French dishes, such Stories of food and life in the village and the unique atmosphere of the atelier accent this personal cookbook. We can almost hear the clanking of the copper pots, the hiss of the vintage espresso machine, and the merriment around the table, as we meet some of the region’s best small farmers and artisanal producers and experience how Taylor and Smith Franchini’s family work together to create this special place.
More than a practical introduction to classic French cooking, this richly illustrated volume is also a distinctively designed celebration of the French art of joie de vivre and an inspirational primer on adopting elements of the French lifestyle, no matter where you live.
400 pages, Hardcover
Published April 10, 2018
153 people are currently reading
199 people want to read
About the author
Marjorie Taylor
20 books6 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
November 18, 2018
Who would like to go to France and spend a week in a small village in Burgundy at a family-run French cooking school?
We can't all travel to France, sadly, but we can all travel there virtually through this book. It's a cookbook, yes, but it's also a guide to the local artisans who provide the food for the school. It's a photo album of the school and the family who runs the school. And it's a how-to of wonderful cooking techniques you've always wanted to learn.
We can't all travel to France, sadly, but we can all travel there virtually through this book. It's a cookbook, yes, but it's also a guide to the local artisans who provide the food for the school. It's a photo album of the school and the family who runs the school. And it's a how-to of wonderful cooking techniques you've always wanted to learn.
May 22, 2018
More than a beautiful cookbook with wonderful seasonal recipes and stunning photography. It’s the story of Marjorie and her daughter Kendall’s dream of opening a cook’s haven in the quaint village of Beaune, France. Inspiring! I cannot wait to visit the next time I am in France.
October 5, 2018
Delightful book with easy to read and informative techniques. All the recipes are good to great, although most are meat oriented (im a plant based guy). Worth reading, written by someone (s) who know and love food.
February 25, 2021
This hefty volume is part coffee table book and part cookbook. It was written by my friends Marjorie and Kendall, who created The Cook’s Atelier in Beaune.
I remember when Marjorie first moved to France and we went out for coffee on the Place Carnot, to talk about the logistics of settling into this weird and wonderful place called Burgundy.
Since then, their culinary center and cooking classes have become a resounding success and rightly so. Their cookbook is a reflection of their love of Burgundy and their attention to detail.
I remember when Marjorie first moved to France and we went out for coffee on the Place Carnot, to talk about the logistics of settling into this weird and wonderful place called Burgundy.
Since then, their culinary center and cooking classes have become a resounding success and rightly so. Their cookbook is a reflection of their love of Burgundy and their attention to detail.
April 12, 2025
A wonderful story of how a mother/daughter team moves to France and eventually opens up a cooking school. I loved the recipes, the cooking tips, and info on the cooking utensils/tools!
October 16, 2018
Gorgeous book. Can't say that I learned many new things about French techniques or recipes, but still a fascinating read. I *loved* the images of the Madonna on the shelf. And made me want to move to France and open a bakery/cafe myself. Except I don't have the money to do so. :P
January 31, 2019
Mother daughter duo, Marjorie Taylor and Kendall Smith Franchini, established a French cooking school in Burgundy, and this book chronicles establishing the school and the recipes. They bring significant experience to this undertaking in both cooking and wine, and the book showcases their experience in recipes and in pictures.
This is a large book that may function more as a coffee table book than a cookbook. Lots of pictures feature collections and food in arty arrangements as well as expansive scenery. If nothing else, the book may awake an interest to visit this beautiful place and explore the shop that sells so many of these tools featured in the pictures. The more serious may settle in to read the 60 pages of introduction that includes many pictures but also discussions on wine (primarily burgundy), cheese, cooking philosophy, tools, larder and the really dedicated will attempt to recipes organized by season. Short essays on local purveyors are also included. At the end of the book, the authors explain basic cooking techniques like how to prepare mushrooms or use a knife. Some of these techniques are disputed like not rinsing mushrooms and some of the techniques suggest a level of perfection that is not necessary even if it might be desirable like using farm fresh eggs in a copper bowl for whisking whites. This level of perfection can be off-putting to beginning cooks. Others techniques are quite useful like blanching multiple ingredients in the same pan by starting with the most delicate.
The recipes reflect the cooking school philosophy which is a mix of traditional French techniques, seasonal ingredients and developing an intuition for cooking. Some of these ingredients may be difficult to get in the US like tiny strawberries or heirloom cucumbers. Given the importance of ingredients in these recipes (and how few there are) substituting may significantly affect the quality and or taste.
The equipment section is useful for anyone thinking of buying any kitchen tools. The authors explain what they use and why, and cooks can learn a lot from this section. The larder section emphasizes pure as in little altered from the original as possible, and it’s a strong contrast from Jacques Pepin’s larder where he talks about revitalizing celery in its last leg and using old, moldy cheese. The authors of this book seem to be more perfectionist.
Recipes are clearly written and emphasize the pure flavors of individual ingredients with careful preparation and composed plates. Dishes are generally not complicated but they are careful. The food is beautiful but it requires patience. For learning French techniques of blanching or making a sauce for example, this would be good practice.
This is a beautiful book, but it can be intimidating.
This is a large book that may function more as a coffee table book than a cookbook. Lots of pictures feature collections and food in arty arrangements as well as expansive scenery. If nothing else, the book may awake an interest to visit this beautiful place and explore the shop that sells so many of these tools featured in the pictures. The more serious may settle in to read the 60 pages of introduction that includes many pictures but also discussions on wine (primarily burgundy), cheese, cooking philosophy, tools, larder and the really dedicated will attempt to recipes organized by season. Short essays on local purveyors are also included. At the end of the book, the authors explain basic cooking techniques like how to prepare mushrooms or use a knife. Some of these techniques are disputed like not rinsing mushrooms and some of the techniques suggest a level of perfection that is not necessary even if it might be desirable like using farm fresh eggs in a copper bowl for whisking whites. This level of perfection can be off-putting to beginning cooks. Others techniques are quite useful like blanching multiple ingredients in the same pan by starting with the most delicate.
The recipes reflect the cooking school philosophy which is a mix of traditional French techniques, seasonal ingredients and developing an intuition for cooking. Some of these ingredients may be difficult to get in the US like tiny strawberries or heirloom cucumbers. Given the importance of ingredients in these recipes (and how few there are) substituting may significantly affect the quality and or taste.
The equipment section is useful for anyone thinking of buying any kitchen tools. The authors explain what they use and why, and cooks can learn a lot from this section. The larder section emphasizes pure as in little altered from the original as possible, and it’s a strong contrast from Jacques Pepin’s larder where he talks about revitalizing celery in its last leg and using old, moldy cheese. The authors of this book seem to be more perfectionist.
Recipes are clearly written and emphasize the pure flavors of individual ingredients with careful preparation and composed plates. Dishes are generally not complicated but they are careful. The food is beautiful but it requires patience. For learning French techniques of blanching or making a sauce for example, this would be good practice.
This is a beautiful book, but it can be intimidating.
April 11, 2020
I have read this cookbook cover-to-cover and come back to it over and over, just to browse.
This is a story of a mother and daughter team from Arizona who take their professional backgrounds in food and wine, move to a quaint village in France and open up a cooking school using the region's artisan food producers.
The photography is just stunning - yes, of the food, but of the region. There are stories and photographs of the people they've built a relationship with that source their food and wine. They focus on local and high quality products that people take pride in producing. That is evident in the cookbook itself, even the quality of the paper of the book is thick and high quality.
As far as the recipes, there are many that anyone could make and there are many that are decidingly French. However, because the title of the book is 'The Cook's Atelier', (atelier meaning a workshop of an artisan), they teach many basic through advanced techniques for anyone wanting to be a better cook. For instance, my chicken stock had always been cloudy but their instructions taught me a simple way to make a clear, rich stock.
I set this stunning book in my family room, it is a 'coffee table' book, in my opinion. I flip through it often and dream it is me living the French village life. Ahhhh. Well, at least I hope to one day visit their cooking school on my next trip to France. I'll just have to live vicariously through the images of this beautiful book.
This is a story of a mother and daughter team from Arizona who take their professional backgrounds in food and wine, move to a quaint village in France and open up a cooking school using the region's artisan food producers.
The photography is just stunning - yes, of the food, but of the region. There are stories and photographs of the people they've built a relationship with that source their food and wine. They focus on local and high quality products that people take pride in producing. That is evident in the cookbook itself, even the quality of the paper of the book is thick and high quality.
As far as the recipes, there are many that anyone could make and there are many that are decidingly French. However, because the title of the book is 'The Cook's Atelier', (atelier meaning a workshop of an artisan), they teach many basic through advanced techniques for anyone wanting to be a better cook. For instance, my chicken stock had always been cloudy but their instructions taught me a simple way to make a clear, rich stock.
I set this stunning book in my family room, it is a 'coffee table' book, in my opinion. I flip through it often and dream it is me living the French village life. Ahhhh. Well, at least I hope to one day visit their cooking school on my next trip to France. I'll just have to live vicariously through the images of this beautiful book.
June 6, 2018
Two Americans move to France and start a cooking school and kitchen shop! This is a beautiful cookbook that reads like a memoir. I probably wouldn't cook much from it, but it was a lovely from-the-library, summer porch read.
February 19, 2025
Careful…if you read this lovely cookbook, part story, part recipes with beautiful photographs, you will say as I did, “I must go!”. Already looking at 2026 dates because all of their 2025 cooking school dates are sold out. Preordered their second cookbook, French at Heart to be released April 6. Can’t wait!
October 5, 2020
A lesson in discipline. A treat to the senses. A moment of bliss lost to a time of grace. A great buy if you have a serious cook in your midst.
July 25, 2023
This cookbook included such beautiful stories that I wanted to book a flight to Burgundy asap. The recipes are accessible, simple and quintessentially french. Many menu ideas, typical cooking tools and tips, as well. I may need this in hard cover to add to my collection. Would make a great gift too!
June 19, 2018
Gorgeous photography, lots of recipes, interesting stories, and cooking techniques.
February 23, 2019
I love this book!!
Beaufitul photos, fabulous recpies and excellent stories about their life in Beaune.
Beaufitul photos, fabulous recpies and excellent stories about their life in Beaune.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews