From Asparagus to Zucchini: A Guide to Cooking Farm-Fresh Seasonal Produce, 3rd Edition

I love this book. I am a University Extension horticulturist and work with local producers in promoting locally grown foods. It was good to see information on buying and eating local produce/products and on CSA. The recipes are great too. So many people do not know how to prepare fresh produce and this book provides many recipes on how to do that.

This is a wonderful recipe book, especially for Consumer Supported Agriculture (CSA) members or folks who love to shop seasonally at a Farmer's Market. We belong to a CSA and once those tomatoes (or zucchini or corn, etc. etc.) start rolling in, this is the go-to book to find new and different ways to use all that lovely fresh produce. Organized by vegetable, just flip to whichever vegetable you have before you and you will find information on the best way to store it for the short or long-term, other information, and 10-15 recipes. The recipes often recognize that you may be dealing with bulk amounts and can be expanded as needed. Simple and nutritious information for those of us who enjoy vegetables but may not have had the "farm wisdom" handed down to us.

Not only is this a recipe book, it also offers general background information, cooking tips, storage tips, suggested substitutions, kids' recipes, basic food preservation information and a resource section. From the common to the more obscure, there are dozens of great recipes to help you make the most of fresh produce. I finally have some recipes for gobo and Jerusalem artichoke. Some recipes even list preferred varieties of a particular produce for their specific attributes. A must have for those looking to utilize local, seasonal produce.

Praise: Great veggie cookbook. I call it a REVERSE cookbook - where you look up the ingredient you have (veggie) and there are recipes to make with it - rather than trying to find the stuff to make the recipe. Tasty recipes too. A must for every vegetarian's shelf. Caution: There is a pamphlete version out there that can be mistaken for a "book". It is much smaller in dimension, and pages - does not have all the recipes. Be sure you are getting the full size version - 8.5" X 11", 228 pages. (I learned this the hard way.)

Every recipe that I have made from this book has been outstanding, and a bit addictive! Any time I have shared some of this yummy food with friends, they always ask for the recipe and information on this book. There is a great variety of recipes, something to satisfy every type of chef and picky eater. This collection is a great way to get back to the healthy "slow foods" that we should enjoy more often. YUMMY!!!