Newsletter: 😎 Late summer cooking + Remembering the legendary Michel Guérard 🧑‍🍳

Our favorite blackberry recipes

The last days of summer

As August nods towards September, the US looks towards the Labor Day weekend, the UK prepares for a Bank Holiday, and summer holidays draw to a close. A time for eking the most from those remaining days of leisure, and hopefully of sunshine. We want good things to eat, that don’t take too much effort, and that make the most of the late summer harvest.

A search for summer on ckbk will unearth a wealth of great recipes that hit the spot. Newly added to the site, Yvette van Boven’s Home Made Summer is a one-stop shop for summery goodness. With sections for different mealtimes, the book is packed with fresh, approachable recipes – with the guiding principle that the plethora of fresh fruit, salads and vegetables on offer require little kitchen time, nor are holidays improved by hours slaving over a stove.

Start your day with an Avocado, Cucumber & Lime Shake, before a light lunch of Herb Salad from the Garden with a Poached Egg. Feed friends and family with Crab Cakes with Fresh Citrus-Tomato Mayonnaise, followed by Apricots in Muscat Syrup with Thyme & Bayleaf.

If you are in the Southern Hemisphere (or if the weather outside is just not as summery as you’d like), there are equally many delights to be found in the companion volume, Home Made Winter, which is also now available on ckbk. Inspired by a childhood in ‘cold, wet Ireland’ it holds everything you need to keep cosy and very well fed. Try a traditional Irish Stew, or if the weather is on the fence, perhaps A Winter “Salade de Chèvre Chaud” with Boudin Noir.

If it is fine enough to cook outside, we have a whole collection of Late Summer Barbecue Marinades to ensure your cookout is a delicious success.

Spice up chicken, or rabbit, with Jamie’s Classic Tikka Marinade. Or serve up some Sticky Jerk Spare Ribs.

One way to prolong the summer joy, or at least the bounty of food it brings, is by Preserving Summer’s Harvest.

This collection of recipes, from Red Tomato Jam with Fresh Ginger, to Mushroom Piccalilli, is designed to get your preserving and pickling journey started.

Find all 121 recipes from Home Made Summer

Pictured above: Scallop Ceviche from Home Made Summer by Yvette van Boven

The late, great Michel Guérard

It was with sadness, and great appreciation for his towering contribution to the modern culinary canon, that we learnt of the passing of Michel Guérard on August 19 at the age of 91.

Working as head pastry chef at the Hotel de Crillon in Paris, Guérard won the honour of Meuilleur Ouvrier de France at just 25 years of age, and went on to work at some of the most prestigious restaurants in Paris. He gained a Michelin star in 1967 with his first independent restaurant, Pot-au-Feu, located in an industrial suburb of Paris, which rapidly attracted customers from far and wide with its high end bistro cooking.

By the early 1970s he was at the vanguard of French cooking, spearheading Nouvelle Cuisine – a precise and pared back style of fine cuisine — Paul Bocuse, Roger Vergé, Alain Chapel and the Troisgros brothers.

Driven by an interest in reconciling good health with gourmet living, Guerard went on to develop his most celebrated and ground-breaking contribution to French cuisine; Cuisine Minceur. He opened his restaurant Le Prés D’Eugénie in spa town Eugénie-les-Bains, in the Landes region, which won its first Michelin star in 1974, had gained three stars by 1977, and saw a roster of exceptional future culinary stars pass through its doors, all eager to learn from the great man.

Le Prés D’Eugénie has retained three stars for over 45 years. Its chef-patron has held his position as one of the most important founding influences on modern French cooking, and in particular in changing perceptions of healthy cuisine, for all of his long and illustrious career. His significant legacy lives on at his restaurant, through the countless chefs he has influenced, and in his books. Thank you M. Guérard.

If you want to learn more about Michel Guérard, his books set out the breadth and brilliance of his recipes. Cuisine Gourmande is a masterclass in indulgent classical French cookery, with recipes such as Grilled Duck with Herb Butter Sauce, and Soufflé Pancakes. In Cuisine Minceur he provides recipes to help you cook lighter, health-conscious food, with no compromise on flavor or elegance. Try Mussel, Saffron & Lettuce-Heart Salad, or Potted Salmon with Lemon & Green Peppercorns.

Find 170+ recipes in Cuisine Minceur

Ingredient focus: blackberries

Blackberries are a small dark fruit, formed of a pithy core and a cluster of juicy drupelets. Rather than being one species, there are two dozen, native to America, Europe and Asia.

They are to be found growing wild and ready to harvest from late July into September, and a hedgerow walk to gather fruit is a great late summer joy.

At their best blackberries are sweet and tart, with a delicate earthiness. They do not collapse entirely when cooked, so are a great addition to crumbles and pies – try this Apple and Blackberry Crumble. And Blackberry Jam or jelly benefits from their bright acidity.

Try this Blackberry & Lemon Pavlova, these Blackberry-Lemon Trifles, or any of these recipes in our 12 Ways with Blackberries collection.

6 of the best waffle recipes

The waffle is a homely indulgence worth celebrating – it is National Waffle Day on August 24. Here are six wonderful waffles, so dig out that waffle iron!