Melissa's Everyday Cooking with Organic Produce: A Guide to Easy-to-Make Dishes with Fresh Organic Fruits and Vegetables [Hardcover]

Cathy Thomas (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 26, 2010

Must-have information and amazing recipes for cooking with the freshest, tastiest organic produce

With hundreds of farmer's markets and an increased interest in organic fruits and vegetables, today's home cooks need an accessible reference for shopping and cooking organic. Melissa's World Variety Produce is the nation's leading distributor of specialty fruits and vegetables and the professional chef's go-to source for new and unusual produce. Their products have been certified organic for over 10 years. In Melissa's Everyday Cooking with Organic Produce, the team from Melissa's compiles vital information on fresh, seasonal organic produce with the best recipes for getting the most out of your organic finds.

This inspiring, mouth-watering resource is packed with delicious recipes and gorgeous full-color photos, making it a must-have for anyone who wants to incorporate organic produce into flavorful everyday meals. Inside, you'll find more than 400 recipes, including quick-prep recipes and deliciously easy variations, as well as a special section of meatless options for vegetarians.

• Covers 56 of the most commonly available fruits and vegetables, arranged alphabetically for quick reference
• Includes overviews of each food, what to look for when shopping, tips on buying and storing produce, produce varieties, serving suggestions, and complete nutritional information in the standard USDA format
• Offers "Cook's Notes" and tips, suggested variations, meatless options, and complete nutrition profiles for each recipe

For home cooks who want the latest and most comprehensive information on shopping and cooking with the best organic produce, this book is an invaluable guide.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. In this invaluable guide to fresh produce, food columnist Thomas (Melissa's Great Book of Produce) proceeds alphabetically through 56 popular fruits and vegetables, offering tips on varieties, buying year-round, and proper prep and storage. The real bounty, though, is the recipes-more than 400-that give readers copious suggestions for those persimmons, leeks, or eggplants that look so tempting at the market, and so perplexing on the kitchen counter. While obvious applications such as salads are included, Thomas's recipes are anything but phoned-in: cooks with too many cherries can use them in Cherry, Chocolate and Toasted Almond Ice Cream or as a relish for a grilled pork tenderloin; fresh ginger can be used to liven up Chicken Saté with Peanut Sauce and Cucumber Raita; and even the spinach-averse will reconsider when facing Linguine with Baby Spinach and Blue Cheese, complemented by toasted pine nuts, fresh basil, and prosciutto. Thomas even ventures beyond mains and sides to include a tasty Kiwi Martini and White Sangria, as well as a Nectarine Barbecue Sauce, basic carrot vinaigrette, and easy-to-accomplish pickled shallots.

Review

[STARRED REVIEW] In this invaluable guide to fresh produce, food columnist Thomas (Melissa's Great Book of Produce) proceeds alphabetically through 56 popular fruits and vegetables, offering tips on varieties, buying year-round, and proper prep and storage. The real bounty, though, is the recipes-more than 400-that give readers copious suggestions for those persimmons, leeks, or eggplants that look so tempting at the market, and so perplexing on the kitchen counter. While obvious applications such as salads are included, Thomas's recipes are anything but phoned-in: cooks with too many cherries can use them in Cherry, Chocolate and Toasted Almond Ice Cream or as a relish for a grilled pork tenderloin; fresh ginger can be used to liven up Chicken Saté with Peanut Sauce and Cucumber Raita; and even the spinach-averse will reconsider when facing Linguine with Baby Spinach and Blue Cheese, complemented by toasted pine nuts, fresh basil, and prosciutto. Thomas even ventures beyond mains and sides to include a tasty Kiwi Martini and White Sangria, as well as a Nectarine Barbecue Sauce, basic carrot vinaigrette, and easy-to-accomplish pickled shallots. (Apr.) (Publishers Weekly, April 19, 2010)

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (April 26, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0470371056
• ISBN-13: 978-0470371053
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 8.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #302,982 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #65 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Organic Cooking
  • #82 in Books > Cookbooks, Food & Wine > Cooking by Ingredient > Fruits

More About the Author

Part of the fun of cooking and entertaining is creating delectable dishes without spending hours in the kitchen. That's been the focal point Cathy Thomas' cooking classes and award-winning newspaper features for over two decades.
Her quick-to-prepare recipes show off her full-flavored style, using fresh fruits and vegetables to their best advantage.
Cathy is the Food Columnist at the Orange County Register. She won the first place award as the best food columnist in the nation from the Association of Food Journalists (in the large newspaper division).
She is the author of "Melissa's Great Book of Produce" (Wiley, $29.95). Her new book, "Melissa's Everyday Cooking with Organic Produce (Wiley, $29.95), showcases organic fruits and vegetables. Not only is the new book filled with irresistible recipes, it gives detailed buying and storing tips to help save time and money by preventing waste.
Melissa's/World Variety Produce is a family-run business that is now the largest distributor of organic and specialty produce in America. Produce pioneers Joe and Sharon Hernandez founded the family-run business in 1984 and named the company's brand after their daughter Melissa.
Both of Cathy's books received starred reviews from Publisher's Weekly. And Cathy is really happy about that coveted recognition.
"Fruits and vegetables are sexy," said superstar chef Jose Andres recently on "60 Minutes," adding how with produce the flavors develop in the mouth. With each chew, he said, the flavor changes and gets more interesting.
Yes, Cathy agrees.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars NPR -- top 10 summer cookbooks, July 27, 2010

By 

Judith - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Melissa's Everyday Cooking with Organic Produce: A Guide to Easy-to-Make Dishes with Fresh Organic Fruits and Vegetables (Hardcover)

What a delight to open this book and learn more about organic fruits and vegetables. I saw this book listed on the NPR site as one of the top 10 summer cookbooks. Since following Cathy Thomas' articles in the Orange County Register I knew I would be in for a treat! She has a way of capturing her readers with a story -- and always interesting recipes.

Little did I know when I ordered it how much I would learn about each item listed. The produce is covered in an alphabetic format making it ever so easy to find information about a specific item. Then, each item starts with the same format: buying and storing, prep and use followed by item availability, serving suggestions and recipes that includes NUTRITIONAL INFORMATION.

Just browsing through I found some helpful hints, like how to store cilantro. I always find it discouraging when the cilantro spoils in a couple of days. Now I know how to store it so it will last 7 - 10 days. And did you know that using citrus zest from non-organic produce includes the wax. I never thought about that...now I do.

Another great feature is the listing in the front that includes seasonal availability of produce. Since I plan to give this as a gift for some non-California based family and friends I like that the produce listed is readily available nationwide.

Get this book for yourself, sit down with an organic seasonal fruit and enjoy the journey. You'll want to share the book -- and the treats you'll create from it.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars [...] Cook Book Review, May 21, 2010

By 

E. Russo - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Melissa's Everyday Cooking with Organic Produce: A Guide to Easy-to-Make Dishes with Fresh Organic Fruits and Vegetables (Hardcover)

[...] cook book review :

Melissa's Everyday Cooking with Organic Produce is not just a cookbook. It's also a field guide for organic produce. You'll find information on how to select the ripest, freshest produce, how to save money by buying seasonal produce, tips for preparation, nutritional information, and much more!

The recipes are simple enough that anyone should be able to make more delicious meals from now on by using Melissa's Everyday Cooking with Organic Produce. You'll find tips for making meatless dishes, and there are "Cooks Notes" for most recipes, which provide additional information to insure that the recipe will turn out as anticipated in everyone's kitchen.

If you're looking for a great guide for selecting, buying, and preparing organic (or even just fresh) produce, this is a wonderful choice. The illustrations are great and you are definitely going to learn a lot from this one.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Melissa's Everyday Cooking with Organic Produce, April 14, 2010

By 

Steven Smith (Los Angeles, CA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Melissa's Everyday Cooking with Organic Produce: A Guide to Easy-to-Make Dishes with Fresh Organic Fruits and Vegetables (Hardcover)

Finally a book that shows me how to cooking a full organic meal using accessible and seasonal items that I can find at my local supermarket!

Greet recipes, beautiful photos and a lot of information I was not aware about regarding the care taken to grow Organic Produce.

I been reading other organic books, but this is the best yet!