ERICA BAUERMEISTER

THE SCHOOL of ESSENTIAL INGREDIENTS

Once a month on Monday night, eight students gather in Lillian’s restaurant kitchen for a cooking class. They come to learn the art behind Lillian’s dishes, but it soon becomes clear that each one unknowingly seeks a recipe for something beyond the kitchen. One by one, they are transformed by the aromas, flavors, and textures of what they create. Over time, the paths of the students intermingle and intertwine, and the essence of Lillian’s cooking expands beyond the restaurant and into the secret corners of their lives, with results that are often unexpected and always delicious.

An Indie Next Pick book

“In this remarkable debut, Bauermeister creates a captivating world where the pleasures and particulars of sophisticated food come to mean much more than simple epicurean indulgence…Delivering memorable story lines and characters while seducing the senses, Bauermeister’s tale of food and hope is sure to satisfy.”
–Publisher’s Weekly

“As exquisitely prepared and satisfying as the dishes Lillian prepares in her restaurant.”
–Bookreporter

“Food Network fans will devour this first novel about a whimsical cooking school run by a gentle chef with a fierce passion for food.”
–People Magazine

“A delicate, meltingly lovely hymn to food and friendship. Lillian’s kitchen, full of buttery light and gorgeous smells, is a place where the world works the way it should. You’ll want to tuck yourself into one warm corner of it and stay all day.”
–Marisa de los Santos, author of Belong To Me

“Exquisitely written and heartbreakingly delicious. It’s a luscious slice of life… you will enjoy every bit.”
–Sarah Addison Allen, author of Garden Spells