The New Cuisine of the Sun Cookbook From Acclaimed Chef Francois de Melogue Offers More Than a Ray of Sunshine to Food Lovers Everywhere

    PORTLAND, OR, December 29, 2015 /24-7PressRelease/ -- The phrase "cuisine of the sun" is not a new one, but in the inspired hands of Chef Francois de Melogue, these words take on an exciting and delicious new meaning. His new cookbook, Cuisine of the Sun: A Ray of Sunshine on Your Plate, is a modern exploration of the cuisine that draws people from around the world to France's southern coast. It has arrived just in time for Holiday and New Year's entertaining. Cuisine of the Sun: A Ray of Sunshine on Your Plate is available at Chef Francois' blog, eattillyoubleed.com ($24.99 hardcover/$7.99 e-book) or at Amazon.com as a hardcover book or an e-book.

The book presents a collection of more than 60 recipes that offer readers a culinary journey of this warm and vibrant cuisine. In a refreshing departure from many French cookbooks, de Melogue engagingly and humorously riffs on his favorite traditional dishes, throwing in a contemporary variation or two, adding some food history here, some anecdotes there, and throughout the book, sharing his passion and respect for the art of Provencal cooking.

Cuisine of the Sun is a beautifully written and organized cookbook that has provided de Melogue with a platform for showcasing his many talents. While his cookbook easily demonstrates his mastery of Provencal cuisine, it is also a terrific stage for de Melogue to shine as a funny, impish and down-to-earth chef who is a humorous and insightful writer, a food photographer with a keen eye, a prodigious culinary historian, and lover of life. Throughout the cookbook is lush photography coupled with tender childhood reminiscences, and classic and reimagined Provencal recipes.

He offers his family's epic picnic of a simple grilled Loup de Mer with Artichokes Barigoule. He sends garlic and herbs. He transports them to the old port in Marseille, enticed by the scent of his Mussels steamed in Pastis with Spanish Chorizo, Leeks and Piquillo Peppers.

De Melogue also includes some signature dishes that have stayed with him throughout his career. Delight in his wildly popular Artichoke Tarte Tatin or his exhilarating version of the classic fish stew Bourride he lovingly calls Provencal Sunshine.

"This cookbook is an edible love letter to the South of France, featuring rustic dishes like Olive Tapenade, Marseille Fish Soup and a Rose scented Daube of Lamb that will transport readers back to the French countryside," said de Melogue. "Cuisine of the Sun, A Ray of Sunshine on Your Plate is perfect for those who love food and celebrate their relationship to it. This is not just another cookbook, but an invitation to take a seat and join in the celebration of life from a true foodie's perspective."

Cuisine of the Sun propels de Melogue into an elite group of chefs who are recognized proponents of contemporary and traditional renditions of this flavorful cuisine. Readers will delight in desserts that sweetly cross the fence between American and French cultures like Salted Caramel Apple Beignet, Brown Butter Fig Tarts and even his version of Julia Child's classic dense Chocolate and Almond Cake.

Limited Edition Gift Sets
Cuisine of the Sun will be a much-appreciated gift for food lovers--start the New Year's with a splash by giving this to your New Year's Eve party host. To make the gift even more special, and to introduce readers to the joys of Provencal cooking, Chef De Melogue has created two Limited Edition Gift Sets ($35.99 each) that include the cookbook, a special blend of herbs and/or spices, and a classic recipe that incorporates them.

The Herbes de Provence Limited Edition Gift Set presents the bounty and fragrance of Provence. It includes the cookbook, a special herbes blend of spices, and a free digital recipe incorporating these classic spices. The herbes blend is used in many different ways; as an addition to stews and braises and it's even great on fish or pork chops. As with any spice, it's best to add at the beginning of cooking so the fragrant herbes show best.

The Piment D'Ville Limited-Edition Gift Set includes the cookbook, a tin of the sweet and spicy Piment d'Ville, and a digital recipe incorporating these basque-style spices. This sweet, spicy red chile is locally grown from seed and hand harvested in Boonville, CA. Piment d'Ville is the same variety of pepper known as piment d'espelette traditionally produced around the town of Espelette in the Basque region of southern France. Piment d'Ville is used on a huge variety of items including soft boiled eggs, lamb, chicken, and in soups and stews.

The Special Edition Gift Sets can be purchased at Chef de Melogue's blog, eattillyoubleed.com.

Special Opportunity to Give Back Through December 31
15% of all sales of the cookbook and gift sets, purchased at eattillyoubleed.com through December 31, 2015, will be donated to Feeding America! One cookbook = 40 meals donated. Join in and help needy American families and children get a meal and receive a beautiful cookbook in the process! There is still time to order for last-minute Christmas gifts. Learn more at http://eattillyoubleed.com/product-category/books.

About the Author
Chef Francois de Melogue is a native of Chicago who has worked in and led some of the greatest Provencal and pan-Mediterranean kitchens in France and the United States, and his experience shines through in this engaging cookbook. Beginning as a youth, the son of French parents, he spent his summers near Marseilles, soaking up the sun as well as the culinary lifestyle treasured by his food-loving family. By the time he attended the prestigious New England Culinary Institute as a young man, he had already demonstrated the natural instincts and fervor for cooking that have to served him well over his long career.

After graduating culinary school at the top of his class he built his foundation working under some great mentors, including Chef Louis Szathmary at The Bakery in Chicago and Chef Joel Robuchon at Gastronomie in Paris. He headed the kitchen at the Relais & Chateaux designated Old Drovers Inn in Dover Plains, NY. In 2003, he led the kitchen at the new Pili.Pili in Chicago, a pan-Mediterranean restaurant that was named one of the top ten new restaurants in the world by Food & Wine.

Ever the student and explorer of all things culinary, he continued to expand his horizons in such locales as Prince Edward Island in Canada and California's Mendocino County wine country, earning praise and fans along the way.

In 2011, after an extensive search for a chef, de Melogue was named Executive Chef of the new Figue Mediterranean in La Quinta, California. Emphasizing the finest, locally sourced and sustainably raised ingredients, his joyous Provencal and Mediterranean cuisine soon captivated the area's foodies and, in its first year, Figue was named the best restaurant in the Palm Springs and Coachella Valley area. In 2014, de Melogue appeared on the Food Network's reality show Guy's Grocery Games, which he impressively won.

De Melogue continues to cook, educate and inspire many chefs from around the country with his blog www.EatTillYouBleed.com, and for the past year he has focused his efforts on writing Cuisine of the Sun, his first cookbook.

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