FRENCH LESSONS

MARJORIE TAYLOR and KENDALL SMITH FRANCHINI of Burgundy culinary school The Cook's Atelier share some favourite recipes in their latest book, French at Heart.

- PHOTOGRAPHY ANSON SMART

ORIGINALLY FROM ARIZONA, MOTHER-AND-DAUGHTER duo Marjorie Taylor and Kendall Smith Franchini have long been captivated by the French lifestyle and cuisine. That passion eventually led them to Beaune in Burgundy, where they run The Cook’s Atelier, a French cooking school and culinary boutique.

“Throughout my career as a pastry chef and a cook while Kendall was a girl, I had fallen in love with French food,” says Taylor. From humble beginnings in Kendall’s tiny two-bedroom flat, The Cook’s Atelier expanded and now attracts guests from around the world.

“We made our take on beautiful French food that felt reachable, and not too pretentious,” Smith Franchini says. “Recipes like the feather-light cheese puffs called gougères, magrets de canard (duck breasts) pan-seared to a perfectly rosy rare and served with simple vegetables from the morning's market, and petite lemon tartlets.”

Their first book, The Cook’s Atelier, introduced readers to classic French cooking techniques, while French at Heart offers a more intimate view of life at home, showing how to create simple, joyous meals around the table, wherever that may be. Whether preparing a seven-course feast for Atelier guests or a Sunday dinner at home, their philosophy remains the same: cook seasonally, choose ingredients with care, and honour the people who grow the food. Rooted in la cuisine du marché, the pair source produce from farmers who are also friends, savouring both the food and the connections it brings.

Légumes frites

SERVES 6-8 AS A STARTER