COOKBOOK NOOK by –Peter D. Franklin

If you loved the challenge of cooking from "The French Laundry Cookbook," the award-winning tour de force by Thomas Keller (Artisan 1999), you'll probably enjoy equally as well "Chanterelle," by David Waltuck with Andrew Friedman (Taunton Press, $50).

Both are "restaurant" cookbooks that feature outstanding recipes from pace-setting establishments.

Both favour a French tinge to the preparation and presentation of the food — more so in "Chanterelle" — and both are filled with recipes far too difficult for the average, get-it-on-the-table American homemaker.

"Chanterelle" is the name of a much-honoured restaurant in the Tribeca district of New York's lower Manhattan. (The French Laundry is in the Napa Valley community of Yountville, California.)

At an early age, Waltuck and his wife, Karen, fell in love with the cuisine at top French restaurants. A particular favourite was La Pyramide in the town of Varenne.

It was founded by the legendary Fernand Point, whose wife, Marie-Louise, was as intense for perfection as was her husband. For instance, she wrote the menus by hand, something Karen does for Chanterelle.

After her husband's death, Madame Point guided the writing of a very interesting cookbook about the restaurant and her husband's work called "Fernand Point: Ma Gastronomie" (Lyceum 1974).

"Readers who want to prepare a full, five-or-six-course tasting menu at home to rival the ones we've served at Chanterelle can mix and match dishes to their hearts' desire to do just that," the author says. He goes on to explain how to do that by adding notes and tips to make a dinner party enjoyable for all, including the cook.

The recipes are organised progressively, from hors d'oeuvres and soups to side dishes and desserts. Beyond that there are a few basic recipes, equivalency charts, and sources for ingredients and equipment.

The book's very first recipe gives a hint of what's ahead. It's Herbed Crepes With Black Caviar and Crème Fraîche, and to do it right, you need to get into "a crepe-making rhythm." Other ingredients for subsequent hors d'oeuvres include caviar cream, curried crab cannoli, foie gras, and white truffle butter.

Perhaps you can see where this is going. Oysters, lobsters, duck, rabbit, quail are just a few of the requirements if Waltuck's recipes are to be followed.

Now and then there will be a suggested substitution, but not often. And then, of course, is the challenge of duplicating the presentation as beautifully pictured in the book. Considerable skill is required.

There definitely is a place for a book like this that exhibits the best in the culinary arts. For some it will bring many hours of pleasure in the kitchen. For others, and perhaps for most, it will look absolutely smashing on the coffee table.

Wild or Scottish salmon is best used here. "Farmed salmon has fallen out of favour of late," the author notes, but it's still a "perfectly viable alternative." The author recommends that the salmon be served on a bed of Chive Mashed Potatoes. That recipe is omitted here for space considerations.