A Garden of Recipes: Planting, Growing, Cooking [Hardcover]

Cynthia Gibson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1999

It's easy to plant, grow and cook good foods with this book. Country Living Gardener A Garden of Recipes focuses on simplicity in the garden and shows just how compatible the arts of gardening and cooking really are.

With an innovative format -- chapters divided into "gardens" (the hors d'oeurve garden, the soup garden, the dessert garden, for example), gorgeous watercolor illustrations, and accessible text -- this book appeals to garden aficionados and novices alike. To meet individual readers' needs, each chapter has three types of gardens: in-ground, windowbox, and container, so even readers with small spaced can indulge their hankering for fresh produce.

The author shows that gardening is a natural prelude to cooking, demonstrating that the vegetables, fruits and herbs readers grow can become the joyous beginning of fabulous recipes.

Fifty recipes, such as Summer Squash Soup, Baguettes with Thyme and Rosemary Butter, and Dark Harbor Blueberry Tart, tempt readers into growing their own ingredients and indulging in homegrown delicacies!

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Gardening and cooking are the perfect complements to one another, and Cynthia Gibson has united the two joyfully in a beautifully designed and illustrated book of simple planting instructions and more than 70 recipes. The suggested vegetables and flowers can be planted either in the ground or in pots, and varietal suggestions are given for both.

The book is divided into seven appealing sections. "The Hors d'Oeuvres Garden" contains eight vegetables that combine well with herb pestos and cheeses. "The Soup Garden" produces everything from a hearty vegetable stew to a delicate oak leaf lettuce soup. "The Salad Garden" includes plants for both summer and winter salads; some of these are mouthwateringly unusual, like the Hot Bangkok Beanery Salad and the Chilled Grilled Onion Salad. "The Herb Bakery Garden" consists of both perennial herbs (which grow best in the ground) and annuals, which are perfect kitchen-windowsill potted plants. The Basil Popovers and Mint Cornsticks, among others, will make herb gardeners remember why they love their plants. "The Brunch, Lunch and Dinner Garden" is filled with eggplant, zucchini, sorrel, and other vegetables that make up light, healthy, satisfying meals. (A warning: these are not quickie recipes--sorrel gnocchi, for example, takes two hours to make--but the classic fresh ingredients will produce a dish worth waiting for.) "The Edible Flower Garden" has the most unusual recipes; Steamed Sunflower Buds with Dill and Nasturtium-Filled Nasturtiums--which also contain cream cheese and teriyaki sauce--may not be everyone's cup of tea, but imagining the brilliance of Bachelor's Button Florets and Tomato Salad is enough to make converts to the concept. "The Dessert Garden" is filled to bursting with ripe fruits and berries that, as Gibson says, will "give the gardener a bit of a challenge and the cook an exciting time." A Garden of Recipes will be the joy of any gardener-cook's bookshelf.

From Booklist

From planting seeds to cultivating plants to ultimately harvesting a bounty of fruits, vegetables, and flowers, Gibson's approach integrates the art of gardening with the satisfaction derived from cooking a tasty meal. An interesting twist has Gibson presenting ideas for theme gardens: included are suggested varieties to feature in soup and hors d'oeuvre gardens, an herb bakery garden, and a combination brunch, lunch, and dinner garden. In each instance, recommendations are offered for both in-ground and container gardening, providing practical options based on a gardener's given situation. Recipes span easy-to-prepare offerings, variations on familiar favorites (herbed scones), and intriguing specialties, such as gnocchi with sorrel. Alice Joyce

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 176 pages
• Publisher: Hearst Books; 1st edition (January 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0688159737
• ISBN-13: 978-0688159733
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 8.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,578,527 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Cooking, gardening and art - what better combination?, December 2, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: A Garden of Recipes: Planting, Growing, Cooking (Hardcover)

I've never seen a book quite like this one. It has wonderful, uncomplicated recipes, garden diagrams and suggestions for growing the raw ingredients (including flowers!), and charming, lovely artwork (I, like a previous reviewer, would also like to know if posters will be available). There is a wide range of home-grown ingredients, and fortunately all, with very few exceptions, will grow here in Montana, which, with our short growing season and temperature extremes, is usually the forgotten stepchild in garden books. I especially like the suggestions for garden layouts and instructions for planting and nurturing and the way the reader is taken from seeds to table. This is an inspirational guidebook for old and new gardeners alike - I bought one for me and one for my beginning-gardener/chef daughter. I can't wait to try the "Golden Calendula Custard with Raspberry Puree" and "Arf! Parsley Dog Biscuits".

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great book that even mother's (little) helpers will enjoy, May 11, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: A Garden of Recipes: Planting, Growing, Cooking (Hardcover)

This delightful book provides an ideal way to get mother's little (& big) helpers enthusiastically involved in gardening. The clear directions and plan for planting, growing, harvesting and cooking edible herbs and flowers promises to sustain attention and enjoyment at every phase. The format is beautifully organized and presented (hope those amazing chaper-head watercolors become available as prints!), making it easy to do any of the recipie ideas as separate gardening projects. And for guys like me who are usually relegated to grass cutting and mulch toting, it gives me and the little helpers a chance to join in a project together that's guaranteed to have a delicious ending. With so many great recipie based garden plans to choose from ... I can hardly wait for harvest time. In the meantime thanks to this wonderful book I look forward to having all the family enjoy (& learn) the phases and basics of gardening.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Stunning art and great recipes from your own petit garden!, January 8, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: A Garden of Recipes: Planting, Growing, Cooking (Hardcover)

This is an original presentation of delight in kitchen and garden. There is literally no other book like it. Besides being a beautiful work of art, A Garden of Recipes is full of practical and easy recipes from your own petit garden that please the eye and excite the pallet. Gibson tells all. How to create it and how to eat it, and what it looks like! Her art work is first rate. The illustrations are suitable for framing, and the recipes are ones to add to your favorites. Vegetarians and meat lovers who are looking for wonderful ways to add variety to "that other food on the plate" will love this book. With the fine art work it is really two books for the price of one.