The book follows the format of the TV with the first four chapters devoted to dishes and recipes arranged by the four seasons.Each section contains a short essay on the ingredients available during the season, followed by quick notes on selected subjects.
We begin with Spring and asparagus (risotto, pesto, roasted & or grilled), move onto garlic (poached in soups, roasted with crab or used in salad), followed by peas and beans (risotto, pasta & salads) and lastly potatoes (soups, mashed with numerous variations and in focaccia). Moving onto the bounties of Summer, there is corn (salsa, pasta and salads), tomatoes (with mozzarella, in rigatoni, stews ans panazanella), bell peppers (fusilli salad, stuffed and used in seafood, chicken and meat entrees) and summer squash (ratatouille, salads and saltimbocca).
For Autumn, mushrooms are utilized with lamb shanks or grilled with chicken, while greens are employed in salads, soups, and a few pasta dishes. Onions are also in the fall section (caramelized, roasted and in salads) as well as eggplant (pizza, roasted, polenta and in lasagne). The last season, Winter, again features squash - this time the winter varieties (roasted, stewed, ravioli), plus broccoli (pasta, soup and polenta), artichokes (lemon braised, mixed with fettuccine or roasted) and lastly citrus (salads, or used to flavor chicken and fish entrees).
After the seasonal recipes, there is a chapter on The Classics ~ meals made for weekend cooking as they require lots of prep work ~ gnocchi with lamb shanks, plus a few more gnocchi variations, braised rabbit, roasted pork and a dish featuring monk fish. Desserts is filled with Italian treats: semifreddo, cookies, panettone, biscotti and tiramusu, while the final chapter, Pantry, focuses on the basics ~ rubs, toasted pumpkin seeds, doughs, roasted garlic paste pesto and tomato sauce.
An American Place: Celebrating the Flavors of America, published in 1996. The book is filled with 300 recipes celebrating the bounty of America whether revitalizing traditional fare or offering surprising takes on new dishes.
Up first are Soups & Chowders with Senate bean soup, soups made with corn, Lima beans and other vegetables, fish or lobster chowder, a few bisques, she crab soup, chicken noodle, duck with wild rice, burgoo and a few basic stocks, while Native Salads includes Waldorf, Cesar, and salads made with field greens, asparagus, mushrooms, black beans and sweet potatoes.
From America's Shores are dishes prepared with native seafood ~ cod cakes, clam fritters, crab cakes, oysters (fried or roasted), lobster (baked, grilled, etc.) soft shell crab (one of my absolute faves), scallops, shrimp and numerous fish and ways to prepare them: bass, catfish, mahi mahi, monk fish, pompano, salmon, scrod, snapper, tuna, swordfish and trout. The recipes in From Forest & Farms reflect the cornucopia of meat and game readily available in these here United Sates and run from chicken (grilled, roasted, BBQ and Buffalo style), duck (roasted, pemmican) and turkey (sausage, roasted, grilled and Adobo) to numerous ways to prepare pheasant, quail, partridge and venison. Of course there are a few classics ~ T Bone steaks, Philly Cheese steaks, country ham, lots of chops: lamb, pork & veal, roasted leg of lamb as well as sausage encased in soft pretzel, ham with morels & ramps, and lamb prepared with dandelions.
The last chapter, America's Bakeshop, is filled with so many tasty treats beginning with breads ~ Parker House rolls, biscuits (made with cheddar cheese, buttermilk), scones, spoon bread and Irish soda. Some of the sweet treats that made the list are chocolate pudding, apple crisp or pandowdy, banana Betty, cobblers, tarts, a bread pudding with sour cherry bourbon sauce, ambrosia, plus the usual pies, cakes, cheesecakes, cookies & brownies, and finally sorbets ans ice creams.
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