"This collection of brilliantly conceived, seasonally driven recipes has quickly become one of my favorites. Easy to prepare and incredibly satisfying, this is inventive comfort food at its best. A must for any passionate home cook."
-Gwyneth Paltrow, author of My Father's Daughter
"Fig Snacking Cake Stupendous Hummus Whatever Greens You've Got Salad I want all of it! Melissa's smart, welcoming style and love of food infuse this wonderful cookbook. It's an extremely personal collection of recipes, each with its own subtle twists and original flavors, and on every page you hear Melissa's voice reassuringly guiding you around the kitchen."
-Amanda Hesser, author of The Essential New York Times Cookbook and co-founder of food52.com
Melissa Clark, New York Times Dining Section columnist, offers a calendar year's worth of brand-new recipes for cooking with fresh, local ingredients-replete with lively and entertaining stories of feeding her own family and friends.
Many people want to eat well, organically and locally, but don't know where or even when to begin, since the offerings at their local farmers' market change with the season. In Cook This Now, Melissa Clark shares all her market savvy, including what she decides to cook after a chilly visit to the produce section in the dead of winter; what to bring to a potluck dinner that's guaranteed to be a hit; and how she feeds her marathon-running husband and finicky toddler. In addition, she regales us with personal stories about good times with family and friends, and cooking adventures such as her obsessive cherry pie experimentation and the day she threw out her husband's last preserved Meyer lemon.
In her welcoming, friendly voice, Melissa takes you inside her life while providing the dishes that will become your go-to meals for your own busy days. Recipes include Crisp Roasted Chicken with Chickpeas, Lemons, and Carrots with Parsley Gremolata; Baked Apples with Fig and Cardamom Crumble; Honey-Roasted Carrot Salad with Arugula and Almonds; Quick-Braised Pork Chops with Spring Greens and Anchovies; Coconut Fudge Brownies-and much more.
Melissa delivers easy, delicious meals featuring organic, fresh ingredients that can be uniquely obtained during each particular month. It can be a real challenge to feed families these days, but Melissa's recipes and inviting writing encourage home cooks to venture outside of the familiar, yet please everyone at the table.
Read More
Publishers Weekly
Veteran cookbook author, James Beard recipient, and New York Times food columnist, Clark presents readers with 120 recipes organized by season and month. With a candid opening essay on weekly trips to her local NYC farmers’ market in the dead of winter—think frosty fingers, and ice-topped milk—Clark sets the course for this down-to-earth, realistic guide to cooking throughout the year, finding and highlighting seasonal gems in mains, side dishes, and desserts. Numbered steps guide home cooks through recipes ranging from the simple and quick— August’s A Perfect Tomato Sandwich, June’s Green Peach Salad with Lime and Basil, and March’s Spicy Black Beans with Chorizo and Jalapeños—to simple and slow cooked—September’s Braised Pork Ribs with Green Tomato, Orange, and Thyme, and November’s Ham Bone, Greens and Been Soup. “What Else?” sections feature bulleted tips at the end of recipes such as how to turn a stew into a soup and substituting canned beans for dry, while “A Dish By Another Name” headers lead readers to easy recipe variations. Even with a multitude of cooking-by-season titles in the marketplace, the author’s inspiring use of fresh ingredients and flexible attitude toward cooking make this a solid addition to any kitchen cookbook shelf. (Oct.)
From the Publisher
"This collection of brilliantly conceived, seasonally driven recipes has quickly become one of my favorites. Easy to prepare and incredibly satisfying, this is inventive comfort food at its best. A must for any passionate home cook."—Gwyneth Paltrow, author of My Father's Daughter"Fig Snacking Cake Stupendous Hummus Whatever Greens You've Got Salad I want all of it! Melissa's smart, welcoming style and love of food infuse this wonderful cookbook. It's an extremely personal collection of recipes, each with its own subtle twists and original flavors, and on every page you hear Melissa's voice reassuringly guiding you around the kitchen."—Amanda Hesser, author of The Essential New York Times Cookbook and co-founder of food52.com
Gwyneth Paltrow
"This collection of brilliantly conceived, seasonally driven recipes has quickly become one of my favorites. Easy to prepare and incredibly satisfying, this is inventive comfort food at its best. A must for any passionate home cook."
Amanda Hesser
"Fig Snacking Cake Stupendous Hummus Whatever Greens You've Got Salad I want all of it! Melissa's smart, welcoming style and love of food infuse this wonderful cookbook. It's an extremely personal collection of recipes, each with its own subtle twists and original flavors, and on every page you hear Melissa's voice reassuringly guiding you around the kitchen."
Kirkus Reviews
Delightful seasonal recipes from popular New York Times food columnist Clark (In the Kitchen with a Good Appetite, 2011, etc.). More people are choosing local, organic food over mass-produced products, but knowing how to prepare each season's fresh offerings can be overwhelming. Clark takes the guesswork out of succulent, healthy cooking with 120 creative, easy-to-peruse recipes. The author divides recipes by season and individual month, with dishes that include starters, entrees, sides and desserts. Clark highlights a variety of fresh ingredients, including Tuscan kale, sweet potatoes and rhubarb. Alongside the recipes, the author adds personal anecdotes from her own family of picky eaters. Additional segments, such as "What Else?" and "A Dish by Another Name," offer advice, such as suggestions for substitutions if the dish is being prepared out of season or tips on how to tenderize free-range farmers' market chicken legs, which can be more muscular than sedentary, factory-raised meat. Among the highlights of the book: the winter-hearty Port Wine-Braised Oxtails or Short Ribs; the spring-like Green Poached Eggs with Spinach and Chives; summery Maple Blueberry Tea Cake with Maple Glaze; and the autumnal Stupendous Hummus, which urges the use of dried chickpeas instead of canned for a fuller flavor. Delicious multicultural dishes like Israeli Couscous and bonus recipes from the author's previous cookbook add additional variety. A pleasurable collection for cooks of all skill levels.
Read More
Get Free eBook Sample
