Classic Cookbook Series: The Silver Palate Cookbook and The Silver Palate Good Times Cookbook

It was 1984...












I was in college and had befriended a woman named Susan who had gone back to school – she was probably about 50. She had been married to a wealthy man, then divorced and, as a student, was living hand to mouth. Her clothes and jewelry were worn and shabby but had been expensive when new. She was sophisticated and interesting and I was captivated.

One clear memory I have of Susan was a Christmas party she had in her boyfriend’s rather small apartment. To this day, I remember two of the menu items. One involved a whole, boned chicken -- that is a story for another time.


The other item was White Chocolate Mousse with Frangelico from a chapter entitled, “Nutcracker Sweet Open House” from the Silver Palate Good times Cookbook. Oh…My…God




At the time, I owned just a few cookbooks and paying $23 to own both seemed extravagant, but everything about these books was alluring: from the pictures on the covers, the illustrations, the chapters titles and of course, the recipes themselves.

It was here in the pages of the first volume that I learned to make what was called “Layered Mozzarella and Tomato Salad” which we now see everywhere as Caprese Salad. The authors, Julee and Sheila, asked, “Could any salad be simpler? Or better?” My answers: No and No!!!

These books have a very 80’s feel to me. It was a time of shameless indulgence in many respects and these books reflect that we were still not afraid of heavy cream, butter, red meat, real bread, and doing so in ample quantities. That was a time when we were waking up to all sorts of culinary delights and these books did a good job of promoting dishes that were heavily influenced by French and Italian cuisines in a stylish way. Moreover, Julee and Sheila were clearly foodies but not snobs as evidenced for example, in the Silver Palate cookbook where on one side of the page “Dilled Blanquette De Veau” is to be found with “Pizza Pot Pie” facing it on the opposite page! A good number of the ingredients were still a bit of a stretch to find if you didn’t live in a very cosmopolitan area, but when something is a bit out of reach, it does become all the more desirable, of course.

But, these books are not just style over substance – they possess both style and substance. By and large, you can count on these recipes to deliver. They are terrific books to turn to if you are going to entertain – they allow you to show off a bit.

Now, twenty – five years have passed since I tasted that white chocolate mousse – it’s a memory for me much like Proust’s madeline. Susan and I lost touch long ago although I don’t remember why now. If you happen to be out there, Susan, and stumble upon this blog, thank you for being a good friend, the memory of the white chocolate mousse and for bringing the Silver Palate cookbooks into my life.

Food & Kisses, GiGi