‘If you can read, you can cook’ is the simple philosophy behind one of the most revered cookbooks of our time. Having read it and referred to it many times, one recipe stands out for me: the boeuf bourguignon. A friend and I made it one wintery weekend. We followed the recipe precisely, even measuring the ¼ teaspoon of pepper. Left in the oven while we walked on the beach, the aroma on our return was heaven, the taste sublime.