The Farm: Rustic Recipes for a Year of Incredible Food

Loved it

I ordered Cooking for one by Sarah Peterson and recèd Slow Cooking Just for Yourself and I do not like or want it. what do I do Gail Westergaard

I originally bought this for my daughter in law. But I'm keeping it and I've ordered another for her! Great stories and great recipe's. I really like his PBS show so that's why I bought his cookbook. If you're wondering what to do with your garden produce or farmer's market finds, this is a great reference.

This is a perfect example of a heritage-based farm-to-table cookbook written in a style to let you into the author's experience. Unlike many similar cookbooks, this is not a starry-eyed urbanite "finding" rural life. It is an urbanite who spent summers on his grandparents' farm finding value in continuing the tradition if only on a weekend basis. This results in recipes from his grandparents and great-grandparents being included in the book. Having grown up on a farm, I can the vouch that the recipes based on "this is what is ready in the garden, how do I use it" is the core of farm cooking. He also has provided a realistic blend of quick dishes and elegant entertaining farm style. In ingredients, he includes the hunter-gatherer sensibility - ramps, venison, groundhog ... The final element that gives this book authenticity is the need to use ingredients that were planted by previous generations - black walnuts, apples, asparagus. (For me it was gooseberries, red currants and rhubarb.)To some extent, the recipe sensibility is rooted in the Pennsylvania Dutch tradition but it shows the spreading of other flavors throughout American cuisine e.g. chiles. Examples of recipes: "Radishes with Bacon Butter, "Chilled Corn Soup with Red Pepper Relish", "Purslane Salad", "Potato-Cheddar Pancakes with Perfect Fried Eggs", "Swiss Chard and Fresh Ricotta Pizza", "Grandmom's Bread", "Pasta with Garlic-Scape Pesto", "Wheat Beer Chicken", "Roast Pork Chili", "Creamed Watercress", "Homemade Ketchup", "Magic Peach Cobbler", "Hard Cider" . . . As you can see, the recipes are wide-ranging, presented in seasonal sequence and frequently in reference to a full menu. Each recipe is introduced by a bit of personal memories, details of the origins of the dish, etc. The result is a cookbook worth reading as well as using its recipes.

Really like the format of this cookbook and the simple, rustic, hearty recipes included. The author has a deep commitment to local, organic, non-GMO foods and knows what he's talking about. This is a beautiful book filled with fairly easy, wholesome, healthy recipes for the home cook who is looking for some new ideas for seasonal ingredients/recipes.