Cookbook Corner | ‘Bonjour, Y’all!’ serves up recipes from Myrtle Beach’s Croissants Bistro and Bakery
If you have ever enjoyed a meal or even a pastry break at Croissants Bistro and Bakery, you will want to get in line to purchase “Bonjour, Y’all! Heidi’s Fusion Cooking on the South Carolina Coast.”
This beautiful and delightful cookbook by Croissants owner Heidi Vukov and local writer Sara Sobota is more than a collection of outstanding recipes, organized well and re-imagined for the home cook. It’s a treasure of “deliciousness” offered up by a beloved local eatery, a culinary souvenir of the highest order. The “fusion” in the title is the blending of European style and recipes with the taste and traditions of the Lowcountry as exemplified along the Grand Strand.
Vukov said she decided to write the cookbook after the death of her good friend David Brittain a few years ago.
“This was life changing for me, and I wanted to do something to make a difference,” Vukov said. “David was our friend and an incredible restaurateur.”
The cookbook’s release marks the bistro’s 20th anniversary and also benefits the local culinary scene, as a portion of the book’s proceeds will be donated to the David Brittain Legacy Fund in support of the new International Culinary Institute of Myrtle Beach.
Each item in the book not only gives the recipe, but also explains the bistro’s particular relationship with the dish and provides insights and anecdotes that cover the bistro’s history.
“Sara, a longtime customer, as well as a professor at Coastal Carolina (University) and a freelancer, wrote the editorials in the book, including the introduction and conclusion,” Vukov said. For example, the French bread recipe explains that in Germany, Heidi’s family served a “small roll” each morning, and that fresh bread was essential at every meal.
“French bread was a central item when Heidi opened the doors of her bakery and cafe in 1995,” Sobota wrote, “and its aroma permeated the restaurant throughout breakfast and lunch.”
If you have ever taken a guest from out of town to eat at the bistro, buy the book as a present for that person. If you love Croissants but cannot get to it as often as you would like, buy this book to try some of the recipes in your own home. If you love knowing the story behind the recipe and enjoy good photography, buy this book.
“Scott Smallin did an amazing job,” Vukov said. “He and I were practically attached at the hip for six weeks putting together the dishes for the photography. He gets the light just right and makes the food look delicious.”
Croissants Bistro and Bakery is at 3751 Robert M. Grissom Parkway, Myrtle Beach; 448-2253. The cookbook will be available at the end of April but can be pre-ordered at www.croissants.net, through Amazon and Barnes and Noble, or from the publisher, 1-800-835-4993. A launch party is scheduled for May 9 from 3-6 p.m.
This story was originally published March 31, 2015 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Cookbook Corner | ‘Bonjour, Y’all!’ serves up recipes from Myrtle Beach’s Croissants Bistro and Bakery."