Customer Reviews

The Blackberry Farm Cookbook: Four Seasons of Great Food and the Good Life

5 star:		(12)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

This book is an absolute beauty, and makes me want to visit Blackberry Farm. What a great philosophy towards food and life! The only recipe I've used so far is for their Blackberry Vinegar, which I used to buy at Williams-Sonoma to make a reduction sauce for Pork Tenderloin with, and they discontinued. It was by far the simplest recipe for Blackberry Vinegar I've found, and worked perfectly. Can't wait to dig more deeply into the recipes in this gorgeous book.

I have purchased multiple copies of this cookbook. My first I purchased after hearing the author speak. Sam Beall is very passionate about the concept of from farm to table and this cookbook absolutely exemplifies this philosophy. Since hearing Sam Beall speak I have purchased this cookbook for friends and family. The cookbook not only contains wonderful recipes but the most breathtaking photographs of Blackberry Farm. This cookbook is absolutely inspired.

What a big, beautiful, magnificent collector's cookbook! I could easily say this is one of the most gorgeous in my large collection. It is filled with full-page color photos of one of my favorite places on earth, East Tennessee. Reading it makes me feel like I've been on a trip back home. The recipes are also indicative of that region of the country. These recipes are included: Blackberry Cobbler; Autumn Lamb Roast; Skillet Apple Crisp; Bourbon Apple Fried Pies; Sweet Potato Pie; Deep Fried Turkey; Cider-Basted Venison; and much more. If you want to give a beautiful gift for the holidays, this is it. I love my copy!

I have tried several recipies from this very expensive and lavishly illustrated book, and they have all been disasters. I have been cooking for over 30 years and have never had disappointments like this. Pancakes that fell apart when turned, chicken not done when the recipe says it should be, ice cream that requires baking the chocolate for 8-10 minutes, but it burned in 4...etc. DO NOT WASTE YOUR MONEY ON THIS!

What a wonderful job Sam Beall has done. Recipes wonderful for the pallet. Pictures beautiful for the eye to eat. A recipe book that is accessible for the amateur home cook and still offers something for the gourmet cook. I want a free weekend stay at the Blackberry farm now!

After reading the Blackberry Farm Cookbook I felt as if I had been introduced to the Beall family by a very dear friend and was happily invited to spend a week at Blackberry Farm. As I spent time touring the farm (albeit virtually) and meeting various staff members and nearby neighbors I gained an appreciation for the family's passion and for the gift that we have all received as a result. What a labor of love Blackberry Farm and the resultant cookbook are. The recipes are grounded in reality, rarely calling for ingredients that are difficult to procure, although I would certainly love having a gardener like John Coykendall lovingly coaxing my vegetables from the ground. What a treasure! The fact that the cookbook is divided by seasons gives you the opportunity to leisurely work through the year on the same timetable as Blackberry Farm, imagining that you are living that life, nestled in the Smokies and surrounded by the lore of those whose roots are there. Sam also encourages you to taste as you go so that you can adapt the recipes to the sweetness or lack thereof of the fruit or vegetables that you are using and usually gives you optional ideas for putting the final product together. The photographs pull you along through the cookbook, painting images as you go leaving you hoping that your food will look half as good and wishing that you could enjoy it against a backdrop half as stunning as the grounds of Blackberry Farm. Even if you never try one of the recipes, you will love reading of the Bealls, their neighbors and their love for the Smokies and gifts that they give!!

This was a gift but I did look through it before gifting. I saw Sam Beall and Blackberry Farm featured on Martha Stewart and knew my Mom would love this book(We're from that area of the world). The stunningly gorgeous photos of the Farm, land, food and Inn are worth the cost alone. Though I have not tried the recipes, they are laid out by the four seasons and look wonderfully simple, elegant and sophisticated but with a unique, totally unpretentious, Appalachian down home feel. Get this if you're looking for a special cookbook or gift for someone who likes photography, to cook, eat, farm or travel.

I received this as a gift and really like it. It is so much more than your typical cookbook! Aside from it being full of recipes that I am excited to start trying, it is a pleasure to read about Tennessee and the history of Blackberry Farm and the locals who contribute to it's mystique. To top it off, the photos were beautiful- both of the food and the farm!

Sam Beall is clearly passionate about food, his family and their home. Impressively, the 9,000 acre farm supplies most all of the food that is used at the inn, all year long. I'm inspired to take advantage of the local fare near me.

The book is written beautifully and the photography is
gorgeous. The recipes are not exactly for the basic home
chef but very interesting reading. It is definitely a coffee table book
at our home.
I live very near Blackberry Farm and it is truly an
experience to dine there and to walk around their trails.

I simply love this book. The photography in this book is so beautiful. It's more of a story book with recipes. If someone bought this book for me I would be thrilled. I actually bought the book for myself. I recommend this book to everyone.