Hypnotic, simple shrimp and two foodie reads

Lots to recommend in the food department this week for both mind and palate. I know I yammer on about all things Julia Child, but her memoir, My Life in France, is a warm, inspiring record of how the foods and wine of France completely transformed a former war secretary into one of the world’s most important culinary figures. A 6-foot Californian who initially knew little about fine food, Child moved to Paris as a 30-something newlywed with her husband, Paul. En route to the City of Lights, they stopped off for lunch in the country, where a plate of sole began to transform her palate. She never turned back, and we’re all the better for it. You’ll love this book for its breeziness, romance, inspiration and for the reminder that good food carefully chosen, prepared and shared, really does add meaning to life. The book also traces the evolution of Mastering the Art of French Cooking, the gargantuan tome Child created over many years with Simca Beck and Louisette Bertholle, which changed the way Americans relate to French food and ushered in Child’s memorable PBS series. (“Oooh – I just love coq au vin!” Slap! Slap!) Similarly, Judith Jones’ memoir, The Tenth Muse, My Life in Food, is a dreamy, tasty read. Jones, Child’s longtime editor who pushed for Mastering to be published in a time when others thought it reckless, has her own inspiring gastronomic journey in France, and later, in the U.S., as an editor who found legendary cookbook authors like Madhur Jaffery, Marion Cunningham and others.

All of this made me slow down this weekend and try to reclaim what I so often lose when it comes to cooking: taking time, living by the seasons and forgoing convenience items that really aren’t food at all. That said, my family and I high-tailed it to the Red Stick Farmers Market, where we scooped up fall produce. There’s not a lot in yet, but we did pile our bags high with butter lettuce, butternut squash, cantaloupe and Creole tomatoes. Later, with fresh, local shrimp from Tony’s (the best in town, I believe), we followed a homey Gourmet Magazine recipe (September 2008) of shrimp in ginger butter sauce, which amounts to little more than 12 ounces of shrimp and fresh grated ginger (3 tsp) sautéed in equal parts butter and sherry (4 tbsp each). Top with 4 tbsp chopped cilantro. A baguette is essential for sopping.