Creole

Combining Asian, African, and Indian influences with European preparations, creole is the classic fusion cuisine. Babette de Rozières, who learned to cook from her grandmother while growing up in Guadeloupe, completes a culinary circle of sorts, bringing the signature food style of the West Indies back to Paris, where she is the owner of La Table de Babette. Between cheerful plaid covers, Rozières provides an encyclopedic tour of Caribbean food, from appetizers to desserts, lavishly photgraphed. Spices are complex, but not necessarily fiery hot. Many use West Indian Columbo powder or graines de roussir, a blend of fenugreek, cumin, and mustard seed. Rozières' gleeful mix of traditions is often evident in a single recipe, such as crab profiteroles in a saffron seafood cream, conch ravioli with a crab and lemongrass sauce, or lamb in a tumeric and wasabi white sauce with pistachios.