While many of Ms. Pirret's recipes are sophisticated, they can all be
produced in real-world kitchen conditions. "I hate cleaning up," she
admits. "There is no fancy equipment involved." At the start of each
chapter, she offers louche, entertaining food-related reminiscences,
like the story about the man who seduced her with his cooking. When
she found the take-out trays in the garbage the next morning, she
didn't mind: "He was so smart. And I was very happy."