It is not particularly easy to tease a dinner menu out of a work of fiction, even when cooking and sharing food figures prominently in the story itself. Five Roses, by Alice Zorn is an engrossing story of the complicated relationships and histories between four women living, loving and working in St. Henri, a working-class neighbourhood in Montreal.
As new cooks, we are constantly learning: techniques, flavours, equipment we’ve never seen or used before. Everything is fresh and exciting and we want to excel with them all. Skill, knowledge and experience are all required to be a good chef, but knowing how to use them with refinement is what makes a great one.