Issue link: http://papercitymagazine.uberflip.com/i/889110
90 E nvision the world's most enviable hostess. An invitation to dine in her confines is something to be treasured, for she might whip up Taïnori chocolate mousse for afternoon tea, or construct venison wellington for dinner, all while tossing off bons mots in a British accent. We speak not of a rarified breed of British aristocrat — rather, this host with the most comes in beautiful, readable hardback book form: the first cookbook from London's storied Claridge's hotel, which has us pining for entertaining perfection — something the hotel has proffered since opening its doors in Mayfair in 1853. Written by Meredith Erickson (a frequent contributor to The New York Times, Elle, Saveur, and Lucky Peach) with the hotel's executive chef Martyn Nail, Claridge's The Cookbook ($40, Mitchell Beazley) inspires the eye, palate, and appetite. Recipes are straight from Nail's kitchen, with chapters dedicated to much more than breakfast, lunch, dinner, and the requisite afternoon tea. A quintessentially British chapter is devoted to Elevenses, a tradition begun by English workers, of CLARIDGE'S COMING TO DINNER - BY CHRISTINA GEYER. PHOTOGRAPHY JOHN CAREY - Clockwise from top left: Claridge's teapots, hay-smoked venison, Claridge's Foyer and Reading Room, and the new cookbook. tea and biscuit midmorning to fuel them through the day. The Claridge's version is decidedly more tony: a service offered in the hotel's foyer between breakfast and lunch, with a doughnut trolley, frangipane tarts, and Eccles cakes. — It's the pastry team's chance to show off a bit. A significant section covers Game of the Season, a gastronomic high point of Claridge's that begins mid-August with the first grouse of shooting season. Here, at-home chefs will hone their culinary skills with recipes for game pie of partridge, grouse, pheasant, and duck, served with Cumberland sauce; hay-smoked venison loin over beet-root salad; and pot-roasted breast of partridge with truffled madeira sauce. Our two favorite pages in the book are 212 and 213, titled "How to Host Dinner for 100 (or more)," with preparation expertise, table-setting advice, and Claridge's exceptional rules of event hosting. Then it's on to Christmas at Claridge's — the secret to mince pies and Claridge's Christmas pudding are no longer guarded secrets. Your holidays just took on a British accent.