In the French kitchen with kids
“In her first book, Mardi shows that French food doesn’t have to be complicated. The result is an elegant, approachable cookbook featuring recipes tailored for young chefs and their families. From savory dishes like Omelettes, Croque-Monsieurs or Steak Frites to sweet treats like Profiteroles, Madeleines or Crème Brûlée, readers will find many French classics here. With helpful timetables to plan out baking projects, as well as tips on how to get kids involved in the cooking, this book breaks down any preconceived notion that French cuisine is too fancy or too difficult for kids to master. With Mardi’s warm, empowering and encouraging instructions, kids of all ages will be begging to help out in the kitchen every day of the week.”
Advance praise for In the French kitchen with kids:
One of the best ways to have fun and bond with young people is to cook with them as partners. Kids are inherently creative; the smell and taste of the dishes produced will stay with them permanently. In the French Kitchen with Kids, a thorough, well-organized, approachable and friendly cookbook, will take your child on a delectable culinary voyage leading to a lifetime of lasting memories.
– Jacques Pépin
Mardi brings the flavors of France into your home, and makes them fun for the family to prepare together. From Quick Croissants to silky Crème Caramel, In the French Kitchen with Kids brings everyone to the table, in the true French spirit.
– David Lebovitz, author of My Paris Kitchen
As a French mother of two and a passionate cook, I applaud Mardi’s French-inspired approach to inviting kids into the kitchen. Her extensive teaching experience shines through the entire book, and encourages parents everywhere to share their love of simple, homemade foods with their children.
– Clotilde Dusoulier, author of Tasting Paris and the blog Chocolate & Zucchini
Mardi’s knowledge and dedication to teaching the next generation about the joys of cooking the French classics is obvious, and her fun, thoughtful approach is not only inspiring, it’s totally infectious! My family and I can’t wait to take her with us on our next kitchen adventure.
– Gail Simmons, food critic, TV host and author of Bringing It Home: Favorite Recipes from a Life of Adventurous Eating
Cooking French food with kids might sound like a recipe for disaster. But with veteran kids’ cooking teacher Mardi Michels as a guide, your tiny chefs will soon be whipping up everything from poulet rôti to profiteroles! With clear, concise, and friendly directions – filled with practical advice, and luscious photos – In the French kitchen with kids makes French cuisine easy and accessible for all ages.
– Ann Mah, author of Mastering the Art of French Eating, and The Lost Vintage
I have always marveled at the French talent for educating their children in matters of taste. No age is considered too young to start learning to recognize quality food and to appreciate the pleasures of a shared table. Mardi Michels’ inviting new book creates the kind of allure that will excite children about cooking and leave them feeling empowered and proud of their results.
– Laura Calder, author of French Food at Home and The Inviting Life
We love this collection of irresistible recipes and useful kitchen tips. But the real star of the book is Mardi’s warm and confident encouragement that kids and parents alike can master delicious French food.
– Laura Keogh and Ceri Marsh, authors of The School Year Survival Cookbook and How to Feed a Family
Where to buy In the French kitchen with kids
Buy In the French kitchen with kids on Indigo (Canada)
Buy In the French kitchen with kids on Amazon (this affiliate link will bring you to the Amazon store geographically closest to you)
Buy In the French kitchen with kids on Blackwell’s (worldwide – affiliate link)
Buy In the French kitchen with kids from your local Indie bookstore on Bookshop.org (affiliate link)
French Food for Everyone: le goûter (after school snacks)
French Food for Everyone is a follow up to the best-selling In the French kitchen with kids and was inspired by the students in Mardi’s online cooking classes in 2020 and 2021, when cooking classes pivoted to online platforms. Mardi’s first book proved that French food is much simpler to make than many people believe (so easy even kids can make “fancy” French dishes!), and over the course of a year’s worth of online classes she noticed that it was not just kids but whole families enjoying great success with her recipes. After a few months, one of her students remarked on the “recipe book” they had created from the online class recipes and Mardi realised she had enough recipes for a whole new cookbook – French Food for Everyone was born! The book will be released a chapter at a time to enable people to get baking and cooking sooner!
This first chapter, showcases twelve recipes to make and enjoy for that special snack time between end of school and dinner time in France. Le goûter, as it is known in French, consists of mostly sweet treats, traditionally enjoyed at home but, more and more, en route to extra-curricular activities. Goûter means “to taste” and while some might raise eyebrows at the fact that these snacks are all sweet, they really are meant to be enjoyed in smaller portions (hence the “taste”) and as a way of warding off hunger until the (later than in many countries) dinner hour.
Praise for French Food for Everyone: le goûter!
With her signature clarity and charm, Mardi takes us through a dozen terrific recipes for sweet and lovely French-style after-school snacks. They’re all able to be made by kids, but there aren’t any age limits when it comes to enjoying them – everyone will want them!
– Dorie Greenspan, bestselling author of Baking with Dorie, Everyday Dorie and Around my French Table
Mardi Michels demystifies French baking with her organized and accessible recipes for after-school snacks. Simple, delicious, and free of fuss, these treats are sure to become favorites for Francophiles of all ages.
– Ann Mah, author of Mastering the Art of French Eating
Mardi Michels returns with another wonderful cookbook of approachable French recipes. Whether you’re looking for easy and delicious recipes to make for the kids, with the kids or just for yourself – French Food for Everyone has it all. With easy instructions and beautiful imagery, Mardi also shares a a first-hand glimpse into the amazing French food culture.
– Audrey LeGoff, author of Rustic French Cooking
Mardi’s newest cookbook, French Food for Everyone expands on her skill for step-by-step, zero pretention instructions that make you capable of culinary feats you never dreamed you could accomplish! I know it will become a well-used, tattered, and beloved addition to our family cookbook collection.
– Laura Bradbury – author of The Grapevine series and co-author of Bisous & Brioche
Where to buy French Food for Everyone: le goûter (after school snacks)
Buy French food for Everyone: le goûter (after-school snacks) on Amazon (this affiliate link will bring you to the Amazon store geographically closest to you)
Buy French food for Everyone: le goûter (after-school snacks) on Blackwell’s (worldwide – affiliate link)
Buy French food for Everyone: le goûter (after-school snacks) from your local Indie bookstore on Bookshop.org (affiliate link)
French Food for Everyone: le dîner (dinner)
This second chapter of French Food for Everyone showcases twelve recipes to make and enjoy for dinner. Often, when people hear “French food” they assume the recipe will be too complicated, the ingredients too hard to find, the techniques too fussy for them to attempt at home. In In the French kitchen with kids, I proved otherwise. Children and adults alike all over the world discovered that French food was easy to make at home. That good quality ingredients can be transformed with simple techniques to make delicious dishes.
These dozen recipes are by no means representative of the breadth of French cuisine; rather these are dishes I have come to love over the years living in and travelling to France. Nostalgic dishes (Bavette à l’échalote), comfort food dishes (Tartiflette) and Bistro favourites (Daube de Boeuf) meet beloved classics like Poulet rôti (roast chicken but with a quick twist).
Each recipe includes a wine pairing suggestion from my in-house wine expert (Mr Neil puts his Certified Sommelier, French Wine Scholar and WSET 3 qualifications to good use here!) and, once again, there are illustrations from the fabulous Lisa Nunamaker and I couldn’t love the whole design of the book (once again by the wonderful LeAnna (of Weller Smith Design) more!
Praise for French Food for Everyone: le dîner!
Every year, dozens of cookbooks that claim to offer you the key to honest real-people French cooking are published. This one is the real McCoy. I knew this as soon as I saw the recipe for endives wrapped up in ham, a dish my mother-in-law in the north of France makes for us everytime we visit. Mardi is both a charming writer and a very honest expert on real-people French cooking, which makes her new book absolutely invaluable.
– Alexander Lobrano, author of Hungry for Paris, Hungry for France and My Place at the Table
French family dinner favorites, each with a little twist, each with a bit of advice or two to get things just right. I will recommend this book series to all of my students – because Mardi, a natural teacher, in walking us through each dish, opens the gate to French cooking, making it accessible and enjoyable.
– Lucy Vanel, Plum Lyon Teaching Kitchen, France
Where to buy French Food for Everyone: le dîner (dinner)
Order French Food for Everyone: le dîner (dinner) on Amazon (this affiliate link will bring you to the Amazon store geographically closest to you).
Buy French food for Everyone: le dîner (dinner) on Blackwell’s (worldwide – affiliate link)
Buy French food for Everyone: le dîner (dinner) from your local Indie bookstore on Bookshop.org (affiliate link)
French Food for Everyone: le petit déjeuner (breakfast)
In this third installment of French Food for Everyone, “le petit déjeuner”, I’m sharing a handful of my favourite French breakfast foods (ok, mostly pastries!). These are by no means representative of the breadth of French cuisine or typical of an everyday French breakfast; rather these are dishes I have come to love over the years, living in and travelling to France. Simple recipes, step-by-step images, illustrations from the fabulous Lisa Nunamaker and another gorgeous design (once again by the wonderful LeAnna (of Weller Smith Design). I’m so proud of this one!
Praise for French Food for Everyone: le petit déjeuner (breakfast)!
Mardi’s fuss-free, fabulous French recipes that are perfect for breakfast (and snacks) are like a foundation course for budding cooks, written in an engaging way that will, like all the books in the series, empower the whole family, unleash creativity and give them confidence making French recipes.The only difficult bit is deciding which delectable, mouth-watering pastry to make!
-Janine Marsh, author of My Good Life in France and editor thegoodlifefrance.com
This latest cookbook by Mardi Michels is filled with popular treats you’ll see in any decent boulangerie in France. Mardi demystifies the process with clear instructions and illustrations, using ingredients we already have in our pantry. Her magic recipes turn the basic to beautiful.
– Janice MacLeod, New York Times best selling author of Paris Letters
Mardi Michels has long been my go-to source when it comes to cooking French-inspired dishes for the family. Her teaching experience deliciously translates to her recipes: her methods are filled with helpful tips and tricks that make her recipes foolproof. This new tome will make you want to enjoy breakfasts à la française all day, every day.
-Marie Asselin, author of French Appetizers and recipe site, FoodNouveau.com
Viennoiseries, or breakfast pastries, seem like one of the more daunting French kitchen skills to master, but Mardi Michels provides detailed and approachable instructions, complete with step-by-step photos, that make them accessible to bakers of any age. Keep this charming, beautifully designed book on hand to bring la touche française to your breakfast table.
-Rosa Jackson, owner of the cooking school Les Petits Farcis in Nice, France
Where to buy French Food for Everyone: le petit déjeuner (breakfast)
Order French Food for Everyone: le petit déjeuner (breakfast) on Amazon (this affiliate link will bring you to the Amazon store geographically closest to you).
Buy French food for Everyone: le petit déjuener (breakfast) on Blackwell’s (worldwide – affiliate link)
Buy French food for Everyone: le le petit déjuener (breakfast) from your local Indie bookstore on Bookshop.org (affiliate link)
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