Customer Reviews

Fresh from the Garden: Food to Share with Family and Friends

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I received this cookbook yesterday as a gift for my mother. She got it to partner with my organic veggie delivery and the new food blog I recently started. She let me know ahead of time what it was, and I was a bit hesitant after I checked it out on Amazon and saw no reviews.

What a beautiful book! From the cover, to the full color pictures, to the ribbons for bookmarks (in green & orange to match the color scheme of bright, cheerful colors), it is just so fun to just look at!

The cookbook is divided into four sections with each season separated by a bright color. At the beginning of each season (section) is a table of contents so you can see what recipes are included. The recipes are laid out very well and are easy to read as you cook along with it.

So far, I've found the recipes to be, as I put it, "not un-do-able." Leafing through them, I haven't found anything I can't do, aside from grilling recipes because I have a "one butt kitchen" in a small apartment and no outdoor grill. Even then, I'm sure I could find a work-around. Love the use of FRESH ingredients in the recipes.

Honestly, the first recipe that I saw when I opened the book was for a Cream of Tomato soup and that's what we had for dinner last night. It was easy to do and really good.

If the first recipe and the beauty of this book are any indication, I'm going to have lots of fun with it.

I held back on 5 stars only because I've done one recipe and have the book in my possession about 36 hours. :)

NOTE : First off, I am not a cook. I never professed to having cooking skills, and I always boasted my lack of culinary prowess. My husband, on the hand, spent his formative years in the kitchen.

We received this book as a wedding present. We have only made four recipes from the book, but we have definitely taken our time with it. The book is sectioned off by seasons. Seasons brings us access to locally grown food, and reminds of certain foods we crave. Plus, there is a focus on entertaining foods versus foods for the family. The variety of recipes run the gamut from French to Malaysian to Mexican. Normally, I find certain ethnic foods to bold to conquer, but the author makes it quite accessible.

Sarah Raven writes in a articulate and effortless manner. She guides the reader through a various recipes with an ease of language and a bit of name-dropping. Yet, in a manner that is not pretentious at all. She tells the story of the dish and why it made it into this collection. The accompanying photographs by Jonathan Buckley makes one salivate.

The recipes inspire one to cook and entertain. It is a well-written, beautifully organized, and extremely thoughtful. It would make a great gift for novice chefs and ones who need a little shake up in their cooking.

Once again, this author has published the same book under two different titles. "Fresh from the Garden: Food to Share with Family & Friends" and "Food for Friends & Family" are the same books, just one is an English publication and one is American. Do not buy both. As always, I am impressed with Ms. Raven's interesting use of produce, I just wish she'd stop confusing the public by giving the same book two different titles.

This book is simply an essential title for anyone who likes to cook and who wants to eat well. It is organized by season and teaches the reader how to eat and cook foods when they are at there very best! The recipes are written in an easy manner and there is nothing that is not doable. In fact, Sarah Raven simplifies many techiques (pastry, custard, preserving, baking)that other authors tend to complicate.

I particularly love the use of fresh produce here. There are many tasty and inventive ways to use fruits and vegatables. After cooking from this book, I suddenly found that I knew what to do with less common vegetables such as jerusalem artichokes, celariac, and all manner of winter root vegetables. She also has this book organized into menus, making it simple to plan everything from a small dinner party to a full on Christmas lunch! The book has 400 recipes and is really a go to resource for entertaining and good eating.

Some favorites recipes include: Smoked Salmon Pate, Leek and Potato Soup, Squid and Chorizo Salad, Pot Chicken with Tarragon Sauce, Lemon and Passion Fruit Meringue Pie, Lemon Curd Cupcakes, Chocolate Cake with Lime, Orange and Passion Fruitade, Anchovy Mayonnaise, Cream of Tomato Soup, Stuffed Sweet Red Peppers, Chicken Souvlaki, Asparagus and Gruyere Tart, Vanilla and Lemon Cheesecake with Marinated Strawberries, Lemon Tart with Raspberries, Melon Soup, Squash Hummus, Rosemary Flatbread, Wild Mushroom Lasagne, Mussles in Cream Curry Sauce, Thai Chicken Burgers, Toffee Apple Pie, Victoria Sponge Cake with Fruit Curd, Quick Caraway Bread, Stilton and Celery Tart, Indonesian Fish Curry with Mango Salsa, Toad in the Hole, Lime and Lemon Mousse, Spicy Ginger Cake, and Mulled Pear Cider.

As you can see, the above is a long and varied list. But that is what is so great about this book. It is crammed with great recipes that could cover any cooking or entertaing eventuality. Cooking techniques are explained clearly and all the recipes work well. This really is a must have!

If you are looking for a good "fresh from the garden" cook book and you are American, you will not like the recipes in this book. I was born in and spent my childhood in England but have lived in the US since 1967, so I was excited to order this book as the author is English. As an avid home cook and also a registered dietitian, I love to find new recipes and ways to use fruits & vegetables. The first recipe I turned to in the book was Quail Eggs with Homemade Celery Salt - not appealing to me, then flipped to Ham in Hay with Parsley Sauce (calls for one large bag of rabbit food hay). There are too many recipes in this visually beautiful book that will not appeal to US readers (Pan-fried Lamb Kidneys with Lentils?). Lots of the desserts were appealing to me, but I haven't made any of them yet. I also bought Mark Bittman's "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian" and this is now my go-to book for new "fresh from the garden" recipes. I'm not vegetarian, I eat just about everything (except junky processed, poor quality food), but I do like to cook & eat healthy and focus on a plant-based meals and recipes. This book just did not fit that bill for me. I should have reviewed the index prior to purchase.