Customer Reviews

Farm to Fork: Cooking Local, Cooking Fresh

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I have to admit it: I don't like Emeril Lagasse's recipes very much. He's fun to watch, but I've always thought that his food looked disgusting. I've been gifted a few of his cookbooks and I've never made a single recipe. I'm mostly vegetarian and, while he often jokes that he has an oddball vegetarian daughter, his cookbooks don't cater to her.

This cookbook is the exception. I love it. The book is beautiful. It has many gorgeous, full color photos and an attractive and user friendly layout. The recipes give some advice on picking out, substituting or using some of the ingredients. There's even a section on canning and preservation.

The recipes are fresh and simple. He has some unusual vegetables in the book, but also hits on the usuals. I like the unusual ones, because I'm always bringing something home from the farmer's market that I just wanted to try. With a few exceptions, the recipes are very practical and could be made just was easily from stuff found in your local grocery as your local farmer's market (though a few items are seasonal even in the grocery). They also aren't overly complicated to make. Just plain, healthy food.

Also, don't be fooled. Just because he's turned locavore doesn't mean Emeril has traded his pork fat for tofu. The pages do contain slightly healthier foods than I associate Emeril with, but there is plenty of pork (bacon included). I would say much of the book is about prepping vegetables, and therefore mostly vegetarian (some even vegan), but at least 1/4 of it is dedicated to various meats and he even teaches us how to make our own cheese. Who can hate that?

If you are interested in cooking food the majority of your family & guests will like, especially those who are into fresh foods, then this is the book for you. Forget those children who now dominate the so called "Food Networks" who don't teach you a thing about "real" cooking - stick with the chefs with a proven track record like Lagasse. Straightforward, yet creative; accessible, yet adventurous; everything you would expect from someone who wants to help you cook and not just to impress the food snobs. Another winner.

I make no bones about being a fan of Emeril Lagasse. The fact is that when I make his recipes the food tastes great. Friends are impressed with the food, and it is fun to make. So, why not? Long live Lagasse!

In this effort, Emeril provides us with an approach to incorporating more local foods, especially vegetables and fruits from local farms or delights you grow yourself, into your meals. While there are some meat and seafood dishes in this collection, most of the focus is on fruits and vegetables of all kinds. While I love eating meat, I appreciate this fresh approach to fresh food.

He begins the book with a section on using herbs you can grow yourself. He shows you how to turn them into herb oils, pesos, mixing them into goat cheese, using them as (rather than just in) a salad, and with peaches or halibut.

The next chapter focuses on milk, eggs, and cheese, which are things we can usually get locally if we look just a bit beyond our grocers dairy case and cheese racks. He uses cheese in scones, in frittatas, and quiche. Emeril has long advocated shirred (baked) eggs. Want to make your own fresh ricotta? He shows you how. How about making your own mozzarella? Yep, it's here. All this and more fun stuff.

The chapter on leafy greens even includes a lettuce soup, an escarole soup, and cooked greens. I think the recipe for Swiss Chard Boules that you stuff with Lemon Barley cooked like a risotto is fun. He also pan fries oysters with a creamy fennel dressing. Yeah, I think it sounds delicious too. I just bought the book, so I haven't tried it yet. There are also a few salad recipes, as well.

Since it is fall now, the section on corn, beans, and squash is particularly appropriate. From Butternut Squash Soup to Tempura Squash Blossoms, to Corn, Tomato, and Lobster Salad. Have fun! The section on Nightshaes implies tomatoes, but also includes peppers.

You can have a lot of fun with the recipes in the berries, figs, and melons chapter. The Watermelon, Feta, and Arugula salad with Watermelon Vinaigrette is a winner. Just a reminder, though, the better the ingredients, especially the feta, the better the salad will be. Don't skimp! I really want to make the blackberry soup for guests. He also takes us out into the orchard to make delights with apples, apricots, nectarines, and pears. He also has a half dozen recipes helping us enjoy fresh Brussels Sprouts, Kohlrabi, Cabbage, Cauliflower, Kale, and Broccoli Rabe. Enjoy!

He has recipes for thistles, stalks, and pods, roots, shoots, tubers, and bulbs, and winter fruits. If you haven't cooked with celery root (no, it is not the root of our celery plants - it is a something different, but quite wonderful (if very ugly). He also has a chapter on using grains.

There are two chapters on meats. A bunch of seafood recipes, especially shellfish. And a chapter on quail, chicken, turkey, duck, lamb, pork, sausages, and a spectacular one using a 4 bone rib roast.

The last chapter is especially useful for us home cooks who also garden and want to preserve our work for use in the winter. He shows you how to can, pickle, and jam your veggies and fruits. This chapter alone makes the purchase of the book worthwhile.

The recipes are laid out well and the instructions are simple and clear. I think you will find this a practical collection of recipes. The paper and binding are durable and will hold up to real world use. The photos in this book are very nice. Some are of general ingredients while others are of the finished dishes. I prefer the finished dishes so I know what I am aiming for and have serving ideas.

I am glad to have this book and these recipes to try out for my family and friends.

Reviewed by Craig Matteson, Saline, MI

Thank goodness! I am a huge foodie and LOVE LOVE LOVE farmer's markets! I have been a long fan of Emeril's and am so glad he created such a wonderful book. Beautifully crafted, the pictures are amazing. His dialog and explanations are great.... I cannot wait for my garden to be ready so I can buy local AND use my own.... In the past, Emeril's recipes could take on a challenging twist for families. Not this one. Very down to earth (in it actually) and practical with a twist. Great stuff. I assure you, you will not be disappointed.

This is a great book for anyone who wants to cook with fresh ingredients. I love how it is broken down into different food categories such as herbs, dairy, and meats. It makes it very easy to find what you are looking for.

I liked this cookbook very much, though I live in WI and find some of the ingredients impossible to purchase. Good veggie recipes, desserts, and finally a few recipes for cheese. Since I live in WI and can't purchase anything But ultra pasteuized milk products, some recipes won't work. Do try the sauce made with pancetta and cantalope.

I love this cookbook, it really helps in using all my wonderful garden vegetables. Arrived safely and quickly

Emeril is one of my favs, this book was made just for me!
I enjoy gardening to a sorta large scale just to provide for myself and a few friends, family.
You'll enjoy the various up to date recipes.
Thanks.

Lagasse's Farm to Fork is a wonderful book which combines making the best use of locally seasonal food, simple and very tasty recipes, and gentle education on what goes on behind the scenes of local food production. It is a very accessible book and a good read. Lagasse tells us "why" use the foods he suggests and gives little stories or histories behind most of the recipes and ingredients. Meyer lemons originated in China; the pickled onions recipe is from Star Pickling in Massachusetts; cherries are best found in NY, WA, OR, and Ca; what the differences are between crowder peas and black eyed peas, why you should use the small patty pans squashes instead of the larger ones. And on and on he goes in his very Southern conversational manner. I read the entire book just to find out what Lagasse had to say about each and every recipe.
Farm to Food gives good coverage to a wide range of food categories - from herbs to cheeses, "roots, shoots, tubers and bulbs," "fresh off the dock," and "the orchard" to give a sampling of what is included. His food groupings are essentially a typology of how Lagasse views the universe of fresh and local foods. And his brief narratives are a look at why he sees the foods in this schema.
To call this a cookbook would be selling it short - it is so much more than a recipe collection. Do yourself a favor, get this book, settle into a comfortable chair with a Pink Lady Apple Martini (p. 124), and enjoy the afternoon. And by the way, the photographs are the frosting on the cake - or the creme fraiche on the pear tartlets!

As an avid shopper at the farmers market, I'm always looking for new recipes for the fresh food that I buy. The recipes in this book were creative without being overwhelming and were very easy to follow. It's a great read and resource.