In Late Winter We Ate Pears: A Year of Hunger and Love--Seasonal Recipes and Stories From an Italian Kitchen [Paperback]

Deirdre Heekin (Author), Caleb Barber (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 2, 2009

More than a cookbook, In Late Winter We Ate Pears is a love affair with a culture and a way of life. In vignettes taken from their year in Italy, husband and wife Caleb Barber and Deirdre Heekin offer glimpses of a young, vibrant Italy: of rolling out pizza dough in an ancient hilltown at midnight while wild dogs bay in the abandoned streets; of the fogged car windows of an ancient lovers' lane amid the olive groves outside Prato.

The recipes in In Late Winter We Ate Pears are every bit as delicious as the memories. Selections such as red snapper with fennel sauce, fresh figs with balsamic vinegar and mint, and frangipane and plum tart capture the essence of Italy. Following the tradition of Italian cuisine, the 80 recipes are laid out according to season, to suggest taking advantage of your freshest local ingredients.

Whether you are an experienced cook looking for authentic Italian recipes or a beginner wanting to immerse yourself in the romance of a young couple's culinary adventure, In Late Winter We Ate Pears provides rich sustenance in the best tradition of travel and food writing.

Cheers to Chef Barber and writer Deirdre Heekin for sharing these marvelous recipes from Osteria Pane e Salute (Pane translates as bread and Salute as health) and for sharing the story of a most inspired year spent in Italy. In Late Winter We Ate Pears is a testament that bread and health are the things that make a good life.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Just right! An inspiring and informative personal quest and a deeply felt journey into the heart and soul of Italian artisinal cuisine."--Anthony Bourdain, author of A Cook's Tour and Kitchen Confidential



"Not just a cookbook but a love story--between a man and a woman, a couple and two countries, a chef and a writer and the food they love. Deirdre Heekin and Caleb Barber understand the meaning of nurture, and they serve their readers lavishly, inviting us into their story and their kitchen. We savor the flavor of their lives and their table in prose that is good enough to eat."--Julia Alvarez, author of In the Time of the Butterflies and A Cafecito Story



"Enchanting!"--Joan Nathan, author of Jewish Cooking in America



"As beautifully and evocatively written as any novel."--Hartford Courant



"In our mad-rush society, these enchanting essays and delicious recipes remind us of what Italians have always known: one of life's greatest pleasures is to linger at the table with good food and the company of loved ones. And now Deirdre Heekin and Caleb Barber have given us a truly original guide that teaches us, once again, to taste, to savor, to love."--John Searles, author of Boy Still Missing



"A winning and well-written volume full of honest Italian cooking and memories."--Publishers Weekly



"A treat for the senses. The writing will encourage all readers to sit down and savor. You can almost taste the recipes as you read them. Simple and clear instructions will bring Italy into the kitchens of even the most faint-hearted of cooks."--Bill Eichner, author of The New Family Cookbook



"I was charmed by the devotion of these two young Americans to the cuisine and customs of Italy. Deirdre Heekin's thoughtful narrative captures the essence of my country so that I'm made to see it through fresh eyes."--Francesca Duranti, author of Left-Handed Dreams and The House on Moon Lake





"The vignettes of their working Italian sojourns, during which they absorbed many secrets of kitchen and culture, bring a vivid allure to their narrative, just as the fruits of their experience are everywhere apparent in their marvelous osteria."--The Common Reader



"This winning little tome will convince you that the owners of Woodstock's Pane e Salute are bringing true Italian sensibility to this snowy northern state with their osteria."--Epicurious

About the Author

Deirdre Heekin and Caleb Barber are the proprietors and, respectively, wine director and head chef of Osteria Pane e Salute, a boutique restaurant and wine bar in Woodstock, Vermont, recently acclaimed in Bon Appétit, The Boston Globe, Travel and Leisure, and Attaché. Heekin and Barber grow most of their own produce in addition to working with local farm partners. In preparation for his role as head chef of Osteria Pane e Salute, Barber apprenticed with an artisanal baker and in a small trattoria in Tuscany.

Heekin and Barber live in Barnard, Vermont, where Heekin produces artisanal after-dinner brandies and micro-vintage garage wine for the osteria.

Product Details

• Paperback: 312 pages
• Publisher: Chelsea Green Publishing (June 2, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1603581014
• ISBN-13: 978-1603581011
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (29 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #633,521 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

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful Traditional Italian cookbook, July 18, 2009

By 

Sheri Fogarty (United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: In Late Winter We Ate Pears: A Year of Hunger and Love--Seasonal Recipes and Stories From an Italian Kitchen (Paperback)

(What's this?)

The authors, a married couple, own an acclaimed restaurant in Vermont. This book is a compilation of stories and recipes from their travels in Italy. The book is laid out according to the seasons, which I loved. Each section is full of recipes that use the produce that's in season. And there are a lot of recipes in here, around 30 for each season.

The recipes vary from very simple, such as Green Beans in Olive Oil and Lemon to more complicated like Squash Ravioli. But none of them look overly difficult and the explanations are all well done and easy to understand.

Each seasonal section includes meals laid out as Italian meals are served, Antipasti (appetizers), Primi (first Course), Secondi (second course), Cortorni (third course!:) and Dolci (the desert course). There's also a separate section at the end with lovely bread recipes.

A wonderful book that I look forward to cooking from for many years to come.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Enriched and Enriching Cookbook, July 31, 2009

By 

Aceto "All knowledge is sorrow." (Meilhan Sur Garonne) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: In Late Winter We Ate Pears: A Year of Hunger and Love--Seasonal Recipes and Stories From an Italian Kitchen (Paperback)

(What's this?)

By design, this book is a companion to Libation. Deirdre Heekin is joined this time by her Chef and husband, Caleb Barber. Son of the Prophet Ezekiel, Caleb was his scout into a new land. His new Canaan is Woodstock Vermont. They started with a bakery, now expanded to an osteria and some new sidelines. In Late Winter is the kind of cookbook to take with you even when you will not be in a kitchen for days, so much supplemental reading is included. Even the recipes have ample background in addition to much better than average instructions. Not a bad book to read before going to Italy, either. My guess is you will be happier with both volumes. You get a talented writer and a working chef, both passionate and genuine.

This is a cookbook fit for a beginner to use. Most recipes are basic enough to jump right into, given you read the whole entry, preferably twice. The format is quattro stagioni ( four seasons) with entries for each course within. Do not be surprised if only a few are at all familiar to you. This book teaches you to cook using Italian technique and to develop an appreciation of the Italian mentality as you proceed. There are not a dozen pasta dishes, but plenty of variety. If you are an experienced with Northern Italian cookery, you will still appreciate the commentary.

The scholarship is appreciable, without being dominant. The listed sources are good for the curious reader. In particular, Ms. Heekin introduces us to Maestro Martino, a pre-Columbian chef published an important early collection of recipes. Thankfully, she ignores the common modern English edition of his book, a barbarous butchered product of the California Studies in Food and Culture series that never fails to disappoint. I reviewed their feeble volume on herbs; this one is worse. They ripped out the recipes, of all things, and pasted in place only superficially related ones. Our dedicated duo instead responsibly went to the library in Milano to work with his manuscript of "Libro de Arte Coquinaria". You can now get the CD-ROM version of both the manuscript and the English translation here on Amazon. She also cites the Medieval Kitchen published by the formidable University of Chicago, also available here. Next is the great Pellegrino Artusi's seminal "The Art of Eating Well" which was finally reissued when the used copies hit $200.00. Finally, always a nice touch of poetry from the Dover dual language edition of their Introduction to Italian Poetry.

OK, so you hit a recipe calling for fresh sardines, which is not at your local fish market, let alone supermarket. You cannot substitute tinned ones. Move on to the fresh trout instead. They list all the recipes separately from the table of contents, which is handy. Risotto is tricky, but you can come close enough, and get better with practice. The only section that falls a bit short is the one on bread. I understand the desire to include it because of their roots in their original bakery, but there are better dedicated volumes that are more painstaking and complete. But I can use it to make a biga and get good enough results. I have only thirty or so volumes on Italian cookery, so this is a happy addition which I will go back to to exercise in the kitchen, and relax with in the easy chair or airline seat.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Delicious recipes that come with a story, July 27, 2009

By 

Kristine Hale (Utah) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: In Late Winter We Ate Pears: A Year of Hunger and Love--Seasonal Recipes and Stories From an Italian Kitchen (Paperback)

(What's this?)

I have been holding onto this book for a few weeks to really get to know the recipes and I have to say that it has nearly become a staple in my kitchen at this point. In Late Winter We Ate Pears is a cookbook, and a wonderful one at that, but it is also a snapshot of Italy, of owning a restaurant and of, of course, food. This book is broken into seasons, emphasizing seasonal cooking, and each section starts with a few stories. Some of the writing in this book was overly poetic for my taste, snaking off into descriptive paragraphs that sound pretty but don't actually paint a very good picture, and many of the stories are only incidentally about food, but overall it is a delight to read and any foodie will adore it.

The recipes, however, are the reason to buy this book. They are all pretty simple, mostly traditional Italian recipes, and most are very easy to prepare and stay true to seasonal cooking. I love having the recipes broken down into season as I try to eat mainly from my farmers market and it is impossible to find a tomato in May or a snap pea in August, but being able to open this book up to the season and being able to find pretty much any ingredient required is a delight. I also love the final section - bread. I like to bake my own bread but I am a miserable failure at it. The bread section includes lots of tips and instructions that I wish I had five years ago and my bread is already better for it.

Obviously, if you love food, if you love cooking or if you love Italy you will love this book. But if you are just looking for a few easy recipes that use seasonal food or if you would like to be taken on a beautiful journey, I would suggest that you pick this one up right away.