I've always enjoyed reading cookbooks written by British cooks. There's something about the slight differences in vernacular and tone that makes the food seem brighter, more appealing and delicious than it appears to be in American writing. Jane Grigson is one of my favorite English food writers (I wrote about her Good Things book back in January), not only for her no-nonsense British wit, but also because she is deeply knowledgeable and really loved food. Jane Grigson's Vegetable Book is a wonderful resource for anyone who cooks and eats vegetables (which means that everyone should really have a copy of this book on their shelves). Arranged alphabetically, it contains recipes for nearly every vegetable you can think of (because it was written in the UK, some of the veggies won't be where you think they should be. Look for Eggplant under Aubergine and Zucchini under Courgettes) and some you haven't ever thought of before. She doesn't just offer advice on how to prepare these foods, she also instructs on the way to grow or select the very best one.
Another nice thing about the Bison Books Edition (which is the one I have) is that there's an introduction written by food blogger/cookbook author Amy Sherman. She does a wonderful job of introducing Grigson to US readers who haven't heard of her and positions the book snugly into the local foods/Farmers' Market revival that is sweeping the country.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
6-05-2008 @ 8:13AM
Dean said...
This book was originally published in 1978, and it's good to see that it's been reissued. While highly entertaining, it takes a very narrow view of the use of vegetables; and by narrow, I mean British. It's a fun read, and you'll get a few good ideas from it, but it's not as comprehensive as other books on the subject such as those by James Peterson.
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