Savoir Faire: Innovative Louisiana French Cuisine from Classic to Creative Book

People around the world know that the heart and soul of New Orleans is in its cuisine and culture. The recipes included in this book are a celebration of good taste and good living. The are truly presented with Savoir Faire. Pat Richard Paternostro, a native of Abbeville, Louisiana, has always loved homemaking and cooking. She learned Louisiana French cuisine in her formative years. Her father and mother, Remus and Pie Richard, had an appreciation for good food and good living. Remus cultivated a plant nursery where Pat learned about herbs and spices and all things "natural", and Pie and her children cooked the daily meals straight from the family garden. As a graduate of Mt. Carmel Academy, excellent tutledge and home economics influenced and fueled Pat's passion for food and entertaining. Also a graduate of Hotel Dieu, School of Nursing, her aforementioned passions, now combined with her health conscious lifestyle, led her to create many recipes that can be enjoyed without guilt. In 1984, Pat's first culinary venture was "A Little Less". She held cooking classes for healthy dishes with a little less salt, sugar and fat. Many of the recipes in Savoir Faire can be adapted to a healthy lifestyle by following those three simple principles. In 1987, Pat and Ann Bettencourt began a fine catering business. "Puttin' on the Ritz" was created to present savvy and chic meals for private dinner and cocktail parties, showers and weddings. When her daughter and son-in-law (Lisa and Gerard Beck) decided to open a coffeehouse in 1992, they asked "Mom" to create the menu. Caffe! Caffe! is now a thriving success and has two locations - one in Metairie and one in Mandeville, Louisiana. 289 pages