Tiny Food - Eleven Madison Park Cookbook

http://vimeo.com/30365911

I am not a reviewer of restaurants and cookbooks, but when I saw the video of the new Eleven Madison Park cookbook, I had to share it.

The take away is that delectable food can be realized in small portions. It requires some getting used to, that you will be satisfied with a few baby leaves and not the whole salad, but isn't the idea to shrink your stomach to a healthy size?

Although I haven't eaten at Eleven,  I experienced similar artistic cuisine in Barcelona at the Arola Restaurant in Hotel Arts. When the first plate arrived, a Picasso tapa, my sister and  I were hysterical with laughter and wished we had thought to bring our cameras. It did look like a famous painting, but the food was miniature in size and scarce on the plate. And did I mention expensive? What normally we could have eaten in two minutes, we stretched to twenty, admiring and enjoying and in the end feeling not full, but no longer hungry.

Indeed, some restaurants have gone beyond small plates to small food. This is portion control taken to the nth degree, behavior modification practiced to the extreme.  Be inspired by Eleven and try to use small ingredients and artistry in your own food preparation.

Reviewers suggest that the Eleven Madison Park Cookbook by Executive Chef  Daniel Humm and General Manager Will Guidara  is to be savored for its luscious photography and interesting essays about the restaurant's philosophy. In other words it is a coffee table book rather than a cookbook to use for recipes. If you dare take it into the kitchen, an e-mail is provided  for questions in case you get "confused, frustrated, or require further clarification."

Pre-order the book now at Amazon.com and save $20.