REVIEWS

SAVEUR
December 2005

The very sound of the French word soiree conjures up images of fabulous guests sipping aperitifs from fragile stemware and nibbling on the daintiest of hors d'oeuvres, while the hard-working host swears behind the scenes over elaborate garnishes and napery.

In Simple Soirees: Seasonal Menus for Sensational Dinner Parties, however, Peggy Knickerbocker convinces us that such gatherings -- planned or spontaneous -- can be as appealing and effortless for the hosts as they are for the guests.

 
 

To prove that it's possible, Knickerbocker (a Saveur consulting editor) prefaces 28 seasonal menus with descriptions of successful soirees she's hosted -- a "someone-caught-a-fish dinner", for instance, or a rustic "supper on a chilly night".

To each menu she attaches a list of tasks to complete the day before and the day of the party, as well as unfussy decorating ideas (e.g., for a "slow, easy meal under the grape arbor", scatter grape leaves and destemmed sunflowers down the center of the table).

Knickerbocker's decorative flourishes abound in this book, but it is primarily an enthusiastic guide to entertaining for people who, first and formost, love to cook. The food includes uncomplicated dishes like grilled rosemary lamb chops, mushroom risotto and leeks vinaigrette. Therein lies Knickerbocker's secret to soirees: with meals as simple as these, enjoyment just comes naturally all around. - Camas Davis


NEWSWEEK
December 19, 2005
WE COOKED THE BOOKS
ENTERTAINING

So many cookbooks hit you with a barrage of recipes, with nary a thought about how they come together to make a knockout meal. In SIMPLE SOIREES, Peggy Knickerbocker, writer, cook and great hostess, does the hard work for us in a style we trust (she lives and cooks in San Francisco and Paris). Memorably photographed by Christopher Hirsheimer, her complete menus include Any Excuse for Pork, In Praise of Braising and Somone-Caught-a-Fish-Dinner. - Dorothy Kalins


FINE COOKING HOLIDAYS
Winter 2006

Anyone who loves gathering friends around the table would be grateful to receive Peggy Knickerbocker’s new book, SIMPLE SOIREES (Stewart Tabori and Chang, $35), which makes entertaining at home seem like the simplest, most natural thing in the world. Filled with gorgeous photos and 100 of the author’s favorite recipes, organized into accessible seasonal menus for any festive meal - from dinner for two to feasts for a crowd - this book has everything you need to make wonderful meals for friends.


METROPOLITAN HOME MAGAZINE
November 2005

SIMPLE SOIREES: MENUS FOR SEASONAL MENUS FOR SENSATIONAL DINNER PARTIES by Peggy Knickerbocker, photographs by Christopher Hirsheimer: Just in a nick of time, Peggy Knickerbocker’s artful menus for great dinner parties you’ll love to give. - Michael Lassell


INSTYLE
November 2005

It’s not just about following recipes. Peggy Knickerbocker’s SIMPLE SOIREES delivers seasonal menus and decorating ideas for special meals, such as a fall forager’s feast with wild mushroom risotto, served on a rustic linen tablecloth adorned with clusters of autumn leaves, chestnuts, walnuts and filberts.


NEW YORK TIMES BOOK SECTION
December 2005
Notable Books of 2005


SAN FRANCISCO CHRONICLE
November 23, 2005

Throwing a party can be easy
The party season is in high gear, and couldn't we all use a little assistance as we plan to have friends over for a fireside drink, a holiday brunch or a festive dinner? Help is available in this hefty new volume by a woman who declares that there is nothing she likes better than throwing a party: planning, shopping, decorating the house, cooking, serving.

Host-friendly strategies
All those things that give many of us near anxiety attacks are just a bowl of cherries for Peggy Knickerbocker, the San Francisco food writer who is known for the great parties -- and food -- she serves both here and at her Paris apartment. In her new book, "Simple Soirees," she shares her enthusiasm and strategies for giving food-centric parties that the host/hostess can enjoy as much as the guests.

Knickerbocker discusses guest lists (forget the old-fashioned concern with male/female balance, she says), bar setups, mood-creating elements such as candlelight, centerpieces and, of course, menus. Sound like Martha Stewart? Decidedly not. There's no shaping papier-mache or crafting a little something clever from odd materials you glean in the woods around your house; no over-the-top food presentations.

Knickerbocker organizes the book around different occasions and party themes: a Mexican fiesta or Greek seaside soiree for spring; a midsummer night's country supper or a "Someone-Caught-a-Fish" dinner for summer; a cracked crab lunch or a classic Parisian supper for fall, and a trio of last-minute suppers or a post-performance party for winter.

Game plan
For each occasion, she gives some general advice, a timetable that suggests you do much of the major preparations the day before the party, decorating suggestions and a soup-to-nuts menu. The recipes are sophisticated but not fussy and include very few hard-to-find ingredients, although there is a source list at the back of the book.

Not only San Francisco and Paris inform Knickerbocker's menus. An avid, almost obsessive, recipe sleuth, she has gleaned recipes from all over: Gnafron, an intriguing cabbage-sausage custard from Lyon; Cecelia Chiang's minced Chinese chicken in lettuce cups; Mississippi-style cornbread stuffing; bagna cauda from Italy's Piedmont region; a Sicilian lemon granita; Mexican marinated jicama.

For example, in the instructions for a Parisian orange carpaccio, a dessert that has it all -- delicious, uncomplicated, inexpensive, make-ahead and healthy -- cooks are never told to remove whole spices from the syrup. Biting into a clove or a star anise is not particularly pleasant.

The unusually large amount of apples to be piled onto the 12-inch Apple Galette with Calvados means copious amounts of juice -- more than even a well-folded crust and a sheet pan could contain when I baked it. Next time, I'll over-wrap the pan bottom with foil to catch any overflow. But there will be a next time, because it's a wonderful dessert, with one of the best crusts I have ever encountered. - Karola Saekel

QUOTES

"These romantic and delicious dinners are inspired by the beauty of real food and the pleasure Peggy derives from offering these dishes to her friends. We forget that food is deeply about nourishment and love, not about speed and convenience."

Alice Waters, chef & owner, Chez Panisse

"The best dinner parties are created with great care and attention to every detail, and sometimes it is the most minute detail that brings both host and guests to an elelevated level of happiness. Let Peggy Knickerbocker's book be the go-to guide for throwing the ultimate party - whether it's a knock-down blowout or a simple dinner for six. With Simple Soirees as your guide, your next party can be a truly festive one."

Mario Batali, chef & author

  

 © 2005 Peggy Knickerbocker. All Rights Reserved. All photos by Christopher Hirsheimer. Site by Elsa.