Tag: Erin French

Big Heart Little Stove

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French, Erin. Big Heart Little Stove: Bringing Home Meals and Moments From the Lost Kitchen. Celadon Press, 2024.

Reason read: the obsession continues! Actually, in all fairness I needed a book that fit into two genres for the Portland Public Reading Challenge and this fits the bill. Part memoir and all cookbook, I think it fits.

In a word, gorgeous. There is very little else I can say about Big Heart Little Stove without trying the recipes and telling you how they turn out. The food looks delicious. The memoir portion of the book, disguised as longer then usual introductions to each chapter and recipe, are heart-warming. The photography is stunning. My favorite is the one of French sitting with her mother at an outdoor table. French goes a step further and offers advice about setting the table, making the meal special, bringing nature to the plate… And then there is Maine. What is not to love about Big Heart Little Stove?
While the television show never focuses on the alcohol served with meals (except to say French’s mother is the ad hoc sommelier), it was interesting to see beer in some of the the photographs. The coolest shot was of the Maine Beer Company’s best seller, “Lunch”, which also happens to be a favorite of my husband’s.

Lost Kitchen

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French, Erin. Lost Kitchen: Recipes and a Good Life Found in Freedom, Maine. Clarkson Potter, 2017.

Reason read: because I was curious, plain and simple.

It all started with Finding Freedom, Erin French’s memoir about overcoming hardships to return to Maine and create one of the most sought after dining experiences in the world. It is truly a rags-to riches, triumph-over-tragedy, feel-good story. Finding Freedom led to me to television series, The Lost Kitchen and that in turn brought me to French’s cookbooks. Lost Kitchen (the cookbook) is gorgeous with just the right amount of memoir and menus. Photographs and recipes crowd nearly every single page. There is a bit of her biography in the beginning, but she glosses over the messy stuff in order to get to the endearing parts of her story: local girl comes home and makes her hometown a dining destination and here, she has shared some of her recipes with you.
Confessional: I am not interested in quail eggs, razor clams, or chicken livers. I can’t eat shrimp or grapefruit, either. What I did salivate over was anything rhubarb, fiddlehead, or parsnip. I was super excited to see the spicy tomato/tomatillo soup she made on one episode of The Lost Kitchen. She serves it as a summer soup, but I’m thinking it could even be a warm soup served with garlic croutons…

Finding Freedom

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French, Erin. Finding Freedom: Celadon, 2021.

Reason read: this was a gift from my sister. I read everything that comes from her, especially if it takes place in Maine.

To say Erin French is a fighter is an understatement. Let’s start with childhood with an mentally abusive father. I think about what kind of person I would be if, unless I was doing something for him, I never received honest love from my father. To watch him drown kittens would be enough to traumatize me for life. [That is the stuff of nightmares, especially if you are too young to understand the necessity of the act.]
Finding Freedom is not only a story of redemption, but one of tenacity. Coming from a small town is almost always seen as a curse. There is a stigma around being from Nowhere, America. You are considered a nobody if you can’t get out. Breaking free and escaping from your small provincial hometown to make it in the “real world” is always the unspoken goal. Erin almost made it out, but when she had a child out of wedlock and had to come crawling home to Freedom, Maine, it should have been a source of shame, but instead the act saved Erin’s life. Even though there were more adversities to come, her son Jaim gave her a reason to live, to fight, and to succeed. Because of him she was able to navigate a horrific (some would say diabolical) divorce, survive a bizarre custody battle for Jaim, conquer an all-consuming alcohol and prescription pill addiction, and find financial stability. She was able to break down every roadblock her ex-husband and her own demons put in front of her.
You may think I have given you spoilers for Finding Freedom. Believe me when I say I haven’t. There is so much more to Erin’s story. Read it for yourself to find out.

Book trivia: Each section of Finding Freedom is separated by a place in Maine: Hope, Unity, Prospect, Liberty, and Freedom. If people are not familiar with rural Maine they might think she is talking about something entirely different.

Quote to quote, “I didn’t want to live a life where dollar amounts dictated dreams” (p 52). Amen to that. My father always told me, do what you love and love what you do. If you live within the means of your passion you will never want for anything.

Playlist: Cesaria Evora, Billie Holiday, Miles Davis, Bette Midler’s “Baby of mine”, Stevie Nicks, the Sound of Music soundtrack, and Whitney Houston.