| Fresh Food | Toronto, November 5, 2004 |
| Fresh Food | Toronto, November 5, 2004 |
| Gremolata Regulars | Gourmet Media: River Cafe Easy |
 Rose Gray and Ruth Rogers' River Cafe may be the most influential Italian restaurant in the U.K. Among its alumni are Mr. Naked himself, Jamie Oliver, and the influential back-to-the-land-foodie, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingsall. (Mind you the latter, author and star of the River Cottage series was actually fired, though without hard feelings.) In some respects, Gray and Rogers play the role of a British Alice Waters, championing simple dishes made with extremely fresh ingredients, always in season. River Cafe Cook Book Easy (published in North America as "Italian Easy London River Cafe" - presumably to avoid confusion with the eponymous restaurant in Brooklyn) is their foray into the latest trend for quick and easy meals: what you might actually cook on a Tuesday night. But this is not your typical Rachel Ray fare. Though the recipes have short ingredient lists and rarely require more than a few steps, Gray and Rogers explain that, "Although the cook book concentrates on simplicity, there's always a some surprise element, some little twist that we've learnt over the years, both at the River Cafe and when cooking with Italians in their kitchens." Hence the sublime Potatoes with Lemon, the best Salsa Verde recipe ever to encounter a grilled pork chop and a Risotto of Porcinis, Sage and Orange. River Cafe Links: Jamie Oliver: The River Cottage The "Other" River Cafe (Brooklyn, NY): |
Copyright © Gremolata Media Group Inc. 2004.
