Roast Goat Cheese with sesame seeds, Warm Rabbit Salad with rosemary, Cream of Artichoke Soup with smoked salmon, Medallion of Grouper with Anise, Chicken Quenelles on morels and chanterelles, Tournedos with black cherries and green peppercorns, Asparagus Milanaise with quail eggs, Chocolate Mousse with Armagnac ... these are recipes for those who enjoy the time required to prepare fine food properly.

Chef de Cuisine Fredy Stamm was born in Switzerland where he had the good fortune to apprentice at the Grand Hotel National in Luzern, an establishment that once employed Auguste Escoffier. Mr. Stamm's European training was completed under the guidance of Gustav Parsch with additional tutoring by Anton Mosimann, currently executive chef of the Dorchester Hotel, London, England. In 1978 Mr Stamm emigrated to Canada where he worked first at the Banff Springs Hotel and then later at the Windsor Arms Hotel (Toronto) as assistant executive chef to Dante Rota. Since 1984 Mr Stamm has been Chef de Cuisine at The Millcroft Inn, Alton, Ontario.

Fredy Stamm's profile page

'The secrets that put a popular inn in Alton on the culinary map are finally out. Swiss-trained chef de cuisine, Fredy Stamm, who has been with the inn since 1984, shares his secrets in The Millcroft Inn Cookbook. Stamm's book starts with cooking tips and basics that every serious cook needs but doesn't always get. There are simple-to-follow but very good recipes for stocks, broths, sauces and vinaigrettes, Recipes for chicken, salmon and veal mousselines are there, too, for easy mastering.

'The array of dishes that follow are perfect for cooks who want to move on a little from basic recipes and need innovative, exciting new ways of serving popular family and party fare. Cream of artichoke soup with smoked salmon is one such example. And then there is shrimp with soy sauce and ginger, roast duck with maple syrup and apples, braised veal shank a l'orange, potato gnocchi with thyme, champage sauerkraut, plus desserts such as the chocolate mousse with armagnac.

'Whatever the recipe, Stamm has taken special care to write it in a straightforward way so that amateur cooks can handle it with ease in their own kitchen. Additional material like his Words About Wine, are a thoughtful touch, too.'

Toronto Star

'Given the superb surroundings of the Millcroft [Inn], it's no surprise that the fare served up in this cookbook is far from the 'run-of-the-mill'. These are gourmet recipes with all that implies -- rare ingredients, rich sauces and exquisite preparation and presentation. Yet the book itself is not intimidating but rather straightforward and conversational in tone. In high-tech terms, it is user-friendly.

'The style reflects the writer. Fredy Stamm is friendly, warm and approachable. It is obvious he enjoys his work and wants others to enjoy it too.'

Orangeville Citizen