Michale Lazare: An American Boy in a Paris-Inspired Cooking Class

By Michael Lazare, Ace Boise Co-op Culinary Program Student

Sylvie Ryan, with Michael and Pat Lazare

In his mother’s apartment in Paris on a cold day in 1909, the French author Marcel Proust took a sip of tea and a bite of a madeleine. The combined tastes triggered what has come to be called “involuntary memory.” Proust started remembering and writing ... remembering and writing... until his death 13 years later. The result was 3,200 pages and 1.5 million words of prose, in seven volumes, entitiled À la recherche du temps perdu in French, loosely translated into English as "Remembrance of Things Past.” It is considered one of the classic works of world literature. As Mark Twain said, however, a classic is “something that everybody wants to have read and nobody wants to read.” I have not read Proust’s gigantic opus, neither in French nor in English, and I probably shouldn’t call it a classic because I don’t really want to have read it.

But I, too, like madeleines, and their mere memory – in this case remembrances of lavender-honey madeleines past – transports me back to a warm evening in June and a superb Provençal dinner prepared by Sylvie Ryan, who is otherwise known as Wonder Woman. It was part of the Boise Co-op’s continuing series of cooking classes, each with a different theme, and each wonderful. The madeleines came at the end of the meal, as could be expected. The courses that preceded them were in themselves worthy of 3,200 pages, although I don’t think I’m allotted that much space in this blog. The theme, as I noted, was the food of Provence, that section of France bounded on the south by the Mediterranean Sea and on the west by Italy. In fact, the city of Nice, the largest in Provence, was a part of Italy until 1860. So, you might well expect that Provençal food makes artful use of garlic and tomatoes and olive oil and olives and fresh vegetables and cheese and the flavors of brilliant sun and warm ocean breezes. And, you would be right.

We began with fresh goat cheese spread with herb, which also included Greek style yogurt, olive oil, chives, garlic, and salt and pepper, simply mixed, chilled and served on toasted olive bread. Had I not had a writer’s curiosity, plus knowledge of what was yet to come, I could easily have stuffed myself with this wonderful spread and superb bread, and gone home satisfied. But I had advance information, and so I restrained myself.

What came next was a Tian Provençal, basically a vegetable gratin. As Sylvie noted, there are innumerable ways to make a tian, but fundamentally it consists of stir-fried vegetables arranged on a flat dish and baked. Sometime meat or fish are added, but not tonight. Sylvie made four layers on a base of thinly sliced new potatoes, layered with fennel bulb, onions, zucchini, tomatoes, goat cheese again, sun-dried tomatoes, basil and thyme, the whole topped with breadcrumbs and put into a 400-degree oven for 25 minutes.

But wait. There was still the masterpiece of the evening, a Pissaladière. Let Sylvie describe it: “This classic onion and olive tart is the Provence version of pizza. Traditionally this pie is made of caramelized onions, garlic, anchovies and black olives.” Sylvie, as do all great cooks, made the recipe her own. For anchovies she substituted capers. Instead of black olives she used pitted Kalamata olives. She added shredded Emmenthaler cheese.

She spread the bottom of a magnificent pre-baked shortcrust pastry dough with three-fourths of the Emmenthaler, and added caramelized onions and garlic. The capers and olives were arranged on top, sprinkled with the remaining cheese. Fifteen minutes a hot oven, and voila! Conversation ceased immediately as the 20 guests started eating, replaced by muttered exclamations of “Oh, my goodness!” “What a treat!” and just plain “Mmmmmmmmmmm!” Indeed, if I were asked to describe the pissaladiére in technical food-speak, I would say “Wow!”

Do you detect a theme running through the three courses? Of course you do. It’s called “simplicity.” Great cooking consists of melding flavors and tastes and evolves into something that far surpasses the sum of the parts. And it should be this way. Complicated is for show. Simple is for wonderful eating.

Topping off the meal were the Prousts ... er, the madeleines: butter (of course), flour and baking powder, salt, eggs, sugar, lavender honey, lavender flower, lemon zest, powdered sugar. But no publishing contract.

Every time my wife Pat and I return home from one of these sessions, we are conviced that they can’t possibly get better. But they do. Every time. Boise’s food lovers have cause to be grateful.

Beginning with the food of her native Alsace, Sylvie has mastered the cuisine of the world. Couple that with her sparkling personality and that of Linda Ledbetter, the Co-op's Member Services Director who assists with the classes, and you have a food experience that really cannot be missed.

Come on, now, you’ve never even been to one of these classes? Stop whatever you’re doing. Dial 472-4500. Do it now! 472-4500. Trained operators are standing by. 472-4500. But wait, there’s more ... yes, of course, Bon appétit!