The Cook’s Atelier Book Signing in NYC

Posted & filed under Lifestyle.

The Cook’s Atelier is housed in a 17th Century building in the heart Beaune, France and is an amazing place for lovers of all things culinary and especially the aesthetically beautiful. People travel from all over to learn to cook from these two amazing chefs, who happen to be mother and daughter. Marjorie and Kendall are Americans who followed their dreams and moved their families to the idyllic Burgundy wine country, where they teach, cook, dine and share quaffable wines with locals and foreigners alike. Oh, and did we mention the cooking classes take place on a Lacanche Sully range?

For those who cherish the best of the best in cookware, knives and copper cookware, The Cooks Atelier is a wonderland. Everything is curated so beautifully, you will want to buy up the whole shop!

“It’s a shop for cooks created by cooks.”

The olive wood olive spoon is a favorite!

So, what to do if you can’t make the trip to Beaune to visit in person? Marjorie and Kendall recently released their first cookbook that is rich with recipes, stories and the lifestyle so many of us long for – slowing down and enjoying the seasons, fresh produce, sunflowers… the beauty around us.

Stunning full page photos of each dish accompanies these fantastic recipes.

A few weeks ago, Elisa and her East Coast Team were fortunate enough to have both Marjorie and Kendall in person in our New York City Showroom for a book signing. Many gathered to talk recipes, and just to enjoy the camaraderie.

Taking a petit break before the festivities, Elisa and Kristina Brodie peruse the recipes in the newly released book. (photo by Andrea Cantor)

“Recipes, Techniques, and Stories from our French Cooking School.”

You can follow the adventures of Marjorie and Kendall here. Purchase the Cook’s Atelier Cookbook here. Purchase antique cutting boards, copper cookware and much more here. To learn more about the classes in Beaune, click here.

Happy Cooking!

All photos by Carrie Alexander, unless otherwise noted.

Lacanche Burner Ignition

Posted & filed under Tips & Tricks.

Owning a Lacanche range is exciting and rewarding, but we often find that new Lacanche owners need a little help making sure their burner caps are placed properly on their cooktop to ensure proper lighting of the flame.

Here are some helpful hints:

Rotate the top brass burner cap so that one of the burner ports is aligned with the tip of the spark igniter. This will give the spark a better opportunity to make direct contact with the fuel to ignite. See photo example below:

If the spark igniter height appears to be too low or too high (as in the photos below), adjust the height by simply following the video below – starting at minute 1:40:

https://www.frenchranges.com/resource/spark-igniter-replacement-adjustment/

Spark Ignitor Too Low (too far from burner cap)

Spark Ignitor Too High (too close to burner cap)

 

Igniting the burners:

Try depressing the knob and rotate to HIGH instead of IGN, as in this video.  https://www.frenchranges.com/resource/burner-ignition-procedure/ 

Heating the thermocouple:

All Lacanche ranges are equipped with thermocouple technology, a childproof safety feature. In fact, they are adult-proof, if the operation is not learned and practiced.

Only a heated thermocouple will allow your range to work safely and properly. To operate, turn knob counterclockwise past “IGN,” to “HIGH” and fully hold knob in to activate spark ignition system to ignite the burner. Keep the knob pushed in to give the flame enough time to heat the thermocouple on each burner in order to maintain the flame. Initially, this will take approximately 10–20 seconds for the safety thermocouple to heat up.

Once safety thermocouple is fully heated, rotate knob counterclockwise to desired temperature.

*Note: Never force the knob. When moving between “IGN” and to temperature, applying light rotational pressure to the knob while pressing in will help find the halfway point at which the knob will freely rotate. Once rotated to a temperature marking, the knob will not need to be pressed in to make adjustments.

Burner output:

The BTU output of these burners will always be the same.  However, you can lower the burner height by adjusting the screw after removing the knob.  We tuned each burner in house to go as low as possible without blowing out when rotated to low.  You can either adjust the burner height to make it lower, if you wish, or you can ignite the burner and rotate it slowly towards the OFF position until it is very low but not blowing out.  

The only real way to alter the temperature of an open flame is to place a thermal barrier like a diffuser disk between the flame and the pot/pan to absorb and spread out the energy over a wider surface area and cut down the open flame temperature. We have a couple of options available for purchase, but you can also use your traditional plate center disc and wok ring as a diffuser.

Top burner flame height adjustment video:

https://www.frenchranges.com/resource/top-burner-flame-adjustment/

If you have questions about lighting your burners, we would be happy to speak with you over the phone while you are in front of your range.  Our main service line is 888-222-2930, or you can email us at support@frenchranges.com

Amy Anton’s Cooking Classes in Houston

Posted & filed under Feature, Lifestyle, Owners' Stories, Recipes.

Amy Anton is the embodiment of our motto here at Art Culinaire, “Bringing the Family Back to the Table.” From a very young age, Amy would sit on the kitchen counter and watch her mom cook. As a teenager, she would host dinner parties for her high school friends, which she continued through college. Amy now has 3 boys and cooks constantly from her home in Houston where she hosts cooking classes twice a week on her Stainless Steel Lacanche Sully range.

Amy shares intimate, hands-on cooking and culinary experiences with writers, local artisans and chefs. These classes expand to include home cooks in unique locations around Texas. If you are a Lacanche owner in Texas, new or old, be sure to check out Amy’s classes for some helpful hints on using your range!

Kitchen Underground is Amy’s website where they are proudly obsessed with food and cooking. She says, “We’ve built lives around the perfect recipe. We started cooking as soon as we could pull a stool up to the stove. We learned family recipes from our mothers, fathers, and grandparents before we could read. We keep our knives sharp and our pantries stocked. We’ve got stories to tell, recipes to share, and a place at the table for you.”

Amy is passionate about local food, and is a founding board member of Recipe for Success Foundation and the founder of aaCooks, a Houston-based cooking forum. She was kind enough to share a fabulous spring recipe with us, which you can view here.

Here is our interview with Amy Anton:

Why Lacanche?

I was attracted to the Lacanche for its beauty and functionality. First, I think is a sexy stove…seems odd to say, but the knobs are refined and the design is simple yet beautiful…I also found many other stoves to seem heavy and masculine. I was also attracted to the functionality of the stove itself- there is nothing electronic that can break- it is simple mechanically, yet operates at a high level. 

What do you like best about the range?

I like using all the different size burners for different things like boiling water in a snap or slowly simmering soups- you can do it all- plus. I have enjoyed the plancha. It is great for pancakes and grilled cheeses and heating up lots of different foods at once, and it is the easiest thing to clean (or you can just put the lid down which is also a gift of convenience!)

How often do you use it?

I cook breakfast for myself, husband and 3 boys every day, and dinner at least 5 nights a week, then I use the stove during the day to teach cooking classes, so it is practically always on!

It sounds like you really love your Sully!

I was so excited when I ordered my Lacanche, and loved that it it took a slow boat to America before being transferred down to Texas. I tell my husband when I am a little old lady to just put me in it and bury me with the stove. Is that too weird?

Of course not! Tell us more about your cooking school.

My cooking lessons are very low key, and you don’t have to be a great cook to come. I always talk about basic ideas as we always need a refresh. I like to cook fresh, seasonal food that is easy to throw together without a lot of fuss. My over arching goal is just to get people in their kitchens, cooking more and enjoying it. Cooking should not be a chore, it should be a joyful experience that brings satisfaction to you, your friends, and family.

We couldn’t agree more! Many thanks to Amy Anton for taking the time to answer our questions. Find her on Instagram. If you are interested in sharing your love for your Lacanche, please email care@frenchranges.com.

Happy Cooking!

Dinner with Padma Lakshmi

Posted & filed under Tips & Tricks.

“I came to associate food not only with femininity, but also with purity and divinity.”

– Padma Lakshmi

Join us as we spend an evening in Padma’s kitchen preparing Zucchini Pudding and Roasted Cauliflower on her British Racing Green Sully Classique.

Using the Wok Ring for Heat Diffusion

Posted & filed under Tips & Tricks.

Lacanche ranges feature powerful BTU gas burners, which makes cooking quite enjoyable! There are times when your recipe calls for a very low simmer. In those cases, we recommend using different implements to control heat diffusion and distribution. If you have the Traditional plate option, you can use the removable center plug as a diffuser, as it is solid cast iron. Additionally it can be coupled with the Wok Ring for added diffusion or when smaller pots are being used. Please see the photos below for reference. 

Traditional plate.

Removing the center disk to use as a diffuser on another burner.

Place the center disk over your wok ring for even more heat diffusion.

Et Voila! Heat diffusion.

Ackerman Heritage House

Posted & filed under Lifestyle, Owners' Stories.

The absolutely stunning Ackerman Heritage House in the Napa Valley was built in 1888 in downtown Napa by famous Bay Area Architect Luther Turton. After a history of being owned and occupied by multiple families, this 130-year-old Victorian mansion was purchased by Lauren Ackerman, who also owns Ackerman Family Vineyards, in 2010. You can read more about the home’s history here.

As many of our clients have undergone a major remodel or renovation to produce their dream kitchen, our story begins here. Bringing the Heritage House back to its intended beauty, utilizing period-correct pieces, took five long years, but what she has created is a gorgeous place for the Napa community and visitors to the area to enjoy.

Lauren describes the lengthy process, and how her range became the center of the kitchen remodel, below.

Lauren’s experience in wine, food and hospitality makes the use of her Burgundy Red Sully 1800 Lacanche particularly interesting! The house is used for all sorts of events and several amazing chefs from the area have cooked in the kitchen – including, Ken Frank of La Toque, Victor Scargle of Bardessono, Sarah Scott, Michael Ginor of Hudson Valley Foie Gras, Mark Dommen of One Market, Private Chef Kelly Mac Donald (Exec. Sous Chef for two US Presidents), Tony Gemignani (author of The Pizza Bible), and many others. Coming up next: Chef Charlie Palmer!

I asked Lauren to answer a few questions about how she chose her Lacanche range and how it is being used today.

Q: How did you choose your Lacanche range?

LA: I purchased the Lacanche as the best alternative to the La Cornue brand, which I was very familiar with. In looking at what would best suit my project at Ackerman Heritage House, I felt the look, style, capabilities and access to service were better suited to my needs. Plus, the pricing was also more approachable for my budget!

Q: Where there any features that really attracted you?

LA: The feature that attracted me the most was the ability to have up to eight burners plus a built-in grill. Also, having two ovens along with the warming area was a big plus. Ease of keeping it clean was also a feature. And finally, the whole “old world” look of the range/stovetop was perfect for the look and feel of my 1888 Victorian kitchen restoration.

Q: How often do you cook on the range?

LA: We use the range several times weekly for various wine and food lunch and dinner events. It’s a really big hit with visitors who “oooh” and “ahhh” over it each time they are in for a tour of the house! We use it frequently for a variety of events and it is always commented on as to its size, beauty and capability by everyone who sees it. We’ve had over 6,000 visitors to the house since we opened in September of 2015 – the kitchen, and specifically the Lacanche range, is always a big hit! Everyone comments on how they would love to cook on it!

Q: Anything else you would like to share?

LA: The Lacanche range has been the heart and soul of this 5-year restoration process and is the centerpiece for the kitchen, the biggest renovation of all within the house. When I got the house, there were four rooms in the kitchen area: two dilapidated pantries, a kitchen area with only a built-in sink – no appliances or cabinets, and a step-down sunporch that was in such bad condition, we had to completely rebuild it. We took out all the walls and made one large kitchen area, reminiscent of the Victorian area, but a thoroughly modern and professional kitchen for today’s chefs. The Lacanche range is the star in this kitchen and one that everyone wishes they could cook on or own themselves. It has been the focus of numerous photos taken by visitors since our opening in 2015. It was also the reason Ackerman Heritage House was chosen to be the premiere property for the popular  “Kitchen in the Vineyards” tour in 2016 when over 800 people attended the property in one day just to see this kitchen! All in all, it has been a pleasure to own and use this remarkable piece of culinary equipment and I know it will serve us well for years to come. Even my family, most notably my 21-year-old son, has cooked on this range. He prefers to cook on it over our range back at our vineyard property!

If you find yourself in the Napa Valley, be sure to check out the Ackerman Heritage House. They provide a few different options for tasting appointments at “The Aviary” on the same property. More information here. And be sure to view Lauren’s Burgundy Red Sully 1800 while you are there!

Copper Cookware

Posted & filed under Lifestyle, Tips & Tricks.

Duparquet handcrafts heirloom-quality copper cookware that beautifully complements the handmade bespoke quality of the Lacanche Range. We have found these copper pans to be as gorgeous as they are exceptional in cooking performance. For an even and quick heat, nothing beats copper! For each piece, Duparquet spins the copper, rivets the handles, tins the cooking surface, and polishes each piece, preparing it for each cook in their kitchen.

At Art Culinaire, we are partnering with the folks at Duparquet to provide top-level copper cookware for Lacanche owners. For more information, please contact your sales representative.

We also offer handmade copper diffusers that will provide the heat distribution of copper to your favorite cookware. You may purchase them here.

 

An Afternoon with Amy Cupp

Posted & filed under Lifestyle, Oven Sizes, Recipes.

Join us for an afternoon of cooking at Artist and Designer Amy Cupp’s lovely Connecticut home, as we prepare a meal using the various features of the Lacanche Sully 2200.

Lacanche goes pop!

Posted & filed under Events, Feature, Lifestyle.

CLUNY FAIENCE | Brass GOOP Mrkt

It is our delight and true honor to collaborate with goop, the powerhouse e-commerce company, as they set up shop in NYC with goop market.  Inside the premier Shops at Columbus Circle at the Time Warner Center, #goopmrkt brings the unique lifestyle brand from online to on Broadway, inviting NYC’s global audience to experience its curated content offline.  

Designed and Custom-Furnished in Collaboration with Celebrated New York Design Firm Roman and Williams, goop mrkt joins The Shops at Columbus Circle at the Time Warner Center through December 24.