I can write, "These dames sure can cook," and probably not risk being smacked, since I'm talking about real dames -- Les Dames d'Escoffier.

This group of women culinary and hospitality professionals started in 1973 in response to the no-girls-allowed Les Amis d'Escoffier (both are named for the French food figure Auguste Escoffier). Today the women's group has 1,300 members in 27 chapters in the United States and Canada.

And it has its first national cookbook: "Cooking with Les Dames d'Escoffier: At Home with the Women Who Shape the Way We Eat and Drink" (Sasquatch, $35).

Here's a taste of whom we're talking about: The foreword is by Alice Waters and Jerry Anne Di Vecchio, and the recipes come from Lidia Bastianich, Julia Child, M.F.K. Fisher, Marcella Hazan, Anne Willen and on and on.

The book brings together more than 120 of their "essential" recipes for all courses.

There's even a recipe by the PG's own Dame, Marlene Parrish, a member of the Washington, D.C., chapter, who contributed Japanese Black Sea Bass with Julienned Carrots, Fennel and Sweet Peppers.

Sprinkled throughout are tips and sidebars on everything from pairing food with beer -- and coffee -- to the group's Green Tables initiative and classic white porcelains, which the late Seattle Dame Gretchen Mathers adamantly maintained was the best way to display food.

While the book includes some fine color plates, too, its main appeal is in the collective knowledge and verve and class of these dames, who really have rustled up a very appealing range of recipes. Try the two great recipes below.

Have a fresh food find? E-mail food@post-gazette.com.

PG tested

We made this recipe -- from the new "Cooking with Les Dames d'Escoffier" (Sasquatch, $35) -- with ingredients from the farmers markets, which is how Ann-Harvey Yonkers would want it. She co-founded FRESHFARM Markets in and around Washington. You can serve this stew on pasta or as an omelet filling or a side dish.

-- Bob Batz Jr.

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 large red or yellow onion, cut into thin wedges
• 5 medium assorted seasonal market peppers (Anaheim, poblano, Hungarian, or bell), cored, seeded, and cut into 1-by-3-inch strips
• 6 to 8 (1 3/4 pounds in all) firm zucchini or summer squash or a combination, cut into 2-inch pieces
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 to 2 tablespoons salt
• 4 grinds black pepper
• 3 pounds ripe tomatoes, peeled, seeded and chopped or just chopped
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh herbs such as sage, oregano, or thyme or a combination
• Optional:
• Fresh corn kernels cut from 4 to 6 ears
• String or roma beans, trimmed and sliced diagonally into 2-inch pieces (about 2 cups)
• Chopped hot chile peppers, such as jalapeno
• 1 cup pitted black olives, drained
• 1/2 cup feta cheese, coarsely crumbled

In a heavy skillet large enough to hold all the vegetables, heat the oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion, stirring to evenly coat. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft and lightly colored, about 10 minutes.

Add peppers, zucchini, garlic, salt and pepper. Cook uncovered for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the tomatoes, cover, and cook until they have rendered their juices. Remove cover and continue cooking, stirring frequently, until juices have thickened to your preference.

Add the basil and other fresh herbs. (At this point add any optional ingredients to taste. The beans will require enough time to become tender; the corn, only a brief time; olives or cheese, a minute.) Taste for seasoning; adjust.

Serve hot or at room temperature as an entree with cooked pasta, as an omelet filling, or as a vegetable side dish

Serves 6 to 8.

PG tested

This came from Lee Wooding, a New York Dame d'Escoffier who "especially favors the puree for accompanying fall and winter meals of roast turkey, pork or duck. It can be prepared hours ahead and reheated to serve.

• 1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/2 pound parsnips, peeled and cut into ??-inch pieces
• 3 quarter-size slices peeled ginger root
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher or coarse sea salt, divided
• 1/4 cup half-and-half
• 1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground white or black pepper
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

Put the sweet potatoes, parsnips, and ginger root in a large saucepan.

Add water to cover by 1 inch and add 1 teaspoon of the salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain, reserving ?? cup of the cooking liquid.

Add the half-and-half, ?? cup of the reserved cooking liquid, and 1 tablespoon of the butter to the vegetables and puree with an immersion blender until smooth and creamy, adding more of the cooking liquid as needed. (Or, the puree can be made in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade or with an electric hand mixer, but the texture will not be as smooth.) Season with the remaining salt, white pepper, and cayenne pepper. If serving immediately, top with the remaining butter and the lemon zest. If not serving immediately, butter a shallow baking dish and spoon puree into it. Top with the remaining butter and lemon zest. Cover with foil. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Reheat in a preheated 350-degree oven until hot, about 20 minutes.

Serves 6.

-- "Cooking with Les Dames d'Escoffier: At Home with the Women Who Shape the Way We Eat and Drink" (Sasquatch, $35).

PG TESTED

This came from Lee Wooding, a New York Dame d'Escoffier who "especially favors the puree for accompanying fall and winter meals of roast turkey, pork or duck. It can be prepared hours ahead and reheated to serve.

• 1 pound sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1/2 pound parsnips, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
• 3 quarter-size slices peeled ginger root
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher or coarse sea salt, divided
• 1/4 cup half-and-half
• 1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground white or black pepper
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

Put the sweet potatoes, parsnips, and ginger root in a large saucepan.

Add water to cover by 1 inch and add 1 teaspoon of the salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer until the vegetables are tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid.

Add the half-and-half, 1/4 cup of the reserved cooking liquid, and 1 tablespoon of the butter to the vegetables and puree with an immersion blender until smooth and creamy, adding more of the cooking liquid as needed. (Or, the puree can be made in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade or with an electric hand mixer, but the texture will not be as smooth.) Season with the remaining salt, white pepper and cayenne pepper. If serving immediately, top with the remaining butter and the lemon zest. If not serving immediately, butter a shallow baking dish and spoon puree into it. Top with the remaining butter and lemon zest. Cover with foil. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Reheat in a preheated 350-degree oven until hot, about 20 minutes.

Serves 6.

-- "Cooking with Les Dames d'Escoffier: At Home with the Women Who Shape the Way We Eat and Drink" (Sasquatch, $35)