Born in Turin, Silvia Baldini is a classically trained chef, who has worked in restaurants in London, New York City and Connecticut, including The Ritz and Ottolenghi. Her recipes and stories have been published in numerous titles including Food & Wine, Saveur, The New York Times, La Cucina Italiana and Forbes.
Silvia Baldini profile picture credit: Shotti
When I married my Italian husband, my mother-in-law gifted me two binders of typed family recipes. Together with my own mother’s handwritten recipes, they are my most treasured possessions and the ones I cook from the most. These faded, much-used, grease-stained pages remind me of the power of women around the table. We women, collectively, can shape the minds and bodies of future generations. When we cook, we not only nourish bellies, we also empower communities and support and advance one another’s careers and dreams.
This is why I wrote Les Dames d’Escoffier New York Cookbook: Stirring the Pot, a collection of 76 family recipes alongside wine pairings from acclaimed sommelier Pascaline Lepeltier. The recipes are delicious and easy to cook from, because they come from some of the most talented women in the culinary world. They range from simple and ideal for any beginner home cook to more process- heavy to appeal to experienced cooks who like a challenge. Every recipe is unique and stimulating, like the Dame who contributed it.
Fromage fort
Recipe contributed by Marsha Palanci, author of Tarte Tatin Tales: Recollections and Recipes for Living the Good Life
