Book excerpt: If you're a Food Adventurer, you cook for pleasure. You love trying out new dishes on family and friends, and you never miss a chance to improve your knowledge and skills. You're at your happiest when you have hours to devote to a fascinating recipe. In The DIY Cook, each chapter is led not by recipes but "projects": nuts-and-bolts guides for the food lover with free time for fun in the kitchen. Constructing a cassoulet, boning and stuffing a pig's trotter, building a trifle. Each project inspires related but simpler recipes, skipping across time, cultures and cuisines. Includes metric measures.