I was thrilled when I recently won an item during a homestead giveaway. Even more thrilled when I learned it was the Farm to Table Cookbook: Seasonal Recipes Made with Farm-Fresh Ingredients. This cookbook is full of recipes for those farm fresh items that you've grown or that you've purchased from the local farmer's market.
Learning to grow and prepare more of my own fresh vegetables is a goal of mine. I like vegetables, I just don't have a wide repertoire of vegetable recipes. I grew up with a vegetable menu limited to potatoes, green beans, peas, and carrots for the most part. As an adult, I branched out and found that I love summer squash, roasted beets, spinach and different varieties of tomatoes. But I still either haven't tasted, or don't know how to prepare, things such as bok choy, kale, winter squash varieties, okra, and other vegetables that are a staple in some kitchens.
Farm To Table Cookbook
Farm to Table Cookbook: Seasonal Recipes Made with Farm-Fresh Ingredients is 180+ pages of recipes geared specifically toward using ingredients directly from the farm or garden.
"Whether your farm is your backyard, garden, a farmer's market, a CSA box, the community garden or a local farm, this book will help you make the most out of your bounty. From hearty breakfasts, satisfying sandwiches and impressive entrees to homemade breads, sharable snacks and decadent desserts, you'll find everything you need to pile your table high with simple farmhouse goodness" - back cover of Farm to Table
Some of the recipes that immediately catch my eye are:
Kale Fittata with Bacon - with an abundance of eggs from my chickens I already have the majority of ingredients for this recipe here at home. If I learn that I don't care for kale, I imagine that spinach would be a good substitute.
Farmer's Market Grilled Chowder - includes corn, potato, zucchini, and onion in a cheesy/creamy broth. The photo makes my mouth water.
Butternut Bisque - I only very recently learned that I love the taste of roasted butternut so I am looking forward to finding more ways to prepare it. This looks creamy and delicous (and easy!)
Spinach Noodle Bowl with Ginger - vermicelli noodles, carrots, snow peas, spinach, and meet (shrimp or cooked chicken) with soy sauce and ginger is definitely a recipe I'm excited to try.
Butternut Squash Gnocchi with Savory Herb Butter - I've watched gnocchi being made on some of the cooking shows but haven't been brave enough to try. I LOVE the idea of butternut gnocchi.
These are just the first five recipes that I've bookmarked for myself. I hope to become more successful at both raising a variety of my own vegetables and then being able to cook tasty, healthy meals. I know that my health would improve with consuming fewer pre-made foods that contain preservatives and this book is helping in my next step toward eating farm fresh foods.
The whole cookbook sounds like it is filled with simply delicious dishes, Dawn Rae. In addition to being healthy meals. The perfect cookbook for everyone who has access to fresh grown foods.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like the perfect cookbook for you, Dawn! I couldn't help but think as I was reading your post, that you need to come spend a few days with my mother. She can cook all of those vegetables (and more) Personally, I could never eat okra, but my mother loves it and she loves tomatoes too. I bet you two would become big buddies fast. I do love a new cookbook, even if it only has a few new recipes for me to try. It is fun learning new ways to cook with ingredients that are new to me.
ReplyDeleteMy husband used to worked for a company where a wonderful CSA would deliver weekly shares of produce to employees who purchased them. We got to try (and learn how to prepare) new-to-us veggies, such as garlic scapes (yum). We absolutely loved it! Your new cookbook sounds like just the ticket to help you make the most out of your increasing home-grown produce bounty.
ReplyDeleteI love the sound of this cookbook! We mainly prepare all meals from scratch and using fresh ingredients where possible. We do grow some veg and fruit already or buy from local grocers or farmers markets whenever we can and hope to get an allotment in future to be able to grow more of our own veg. This cook book sounds like it would introduce us to new and exciting recipes. I wish you all the best with growing your own veg and cooking those delicious recipes!! !! Thank you for your review and recommendation.
ReplyDeleteThis cookbook sounds like a must-have - and noting that you don't have to have a garden or farm either wonderful encouragement that it can be for anyone - great gift idea
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