Book excerpt: Raymond Blanc is revered as a culinary legend, whose love of delicious food is lifelong. Years of experience have given him a rich store of knowledge and the skill to create fantastic dishes that work time after time. With a range of achievable and inspirational recipes for cooks of all abilities, Kitchen Secrets is all about bringing Gallic passion and precision into the home kitchen. Raymond has done all the hard work, refining recipes over months and even years until they are quite perfect. Every recipe includes explanations and hints to ensure that your results are consistently brilliant. Dishes that once seemed plain, or impossibly complex, suddenly become simple and elegant; the book's sixteen chapters include classics like watercress soup, chicory and Roquefort salad, cep ravioli, apricot cassoulet, chicken liver parfait, confit salmon, moules marnière, grilled dover sole, home cured ham, pot au feu, lambs liver persillade, roast wild duck, lamb cutlets, galette des Rois, cherry clafoutis and Maman Blanc's own chocolate mousse. With scores of recipes from both series of Kitchen Secrets, this is guaranteed to be a must-have for anybody with a love of French cuisine and finesse.