The Homemade Kitchen: Recipes for Cooking with Pleasure
by Alana Chernila
This book is a map for how, day in and day out, food shapes my life for the better, in the kitchen and beyond it.
—from the Introduction
Start where you are. Feed yourself. Do your best, and then let go. Be helpful. Slow down. Don’t be afraid of food.
Alana Chernila has these phrases taped to her fridge, and they are guiding principles helping her to stay present in her kitchen. They also provide the framework for her second book. In The Homemade Kitchen she exalts the beautiful imperfections of food made at home and extends the lessons of cooking through both the quotidian and extraordinary moments of the day. Alana sees cooking as an opportunity to live consciously, not just as a means to an end.
Written as much for the reader as the cook, The Homemade Kitchen covers a globe’s worth of flavors and includes new staples (what Alana is known for) such as chèvre, tofu, kefir, kimchi, preserved lemons, along with recipes and ideas for using them. Here, too, are dishes you’ll be inspired to try and that you will make again and again until they become your own family recipes, such as Broccoli Raab with Cheddar Polenta, a flavor-forward lunch for one; Roasted Red Pepper Corn Chowder, “late summer in a bowl”; Stuffed Winter Squash, rich with leeks, chorizo, apples, and grains; Braised Lamb Shanks that are tucked into the oven in the late afternoon and not touched again until dinner; Corn and Nectarine Salad showered with torn basil; perfect share-fare Sesame Noodles; Asparagus Carbonara, the easiest weeknight dinner ever; and sweet and savory treats such as Popovers, Cinnamon Swirl Bread, Summer Trifle made with homemade pound cake and whatever berries are ripest, and Rhubarb Snacking Cake.
In this follow-up to Alana’s wildly successful debut, The Homemade Pantry, she once again proves herself to be the truest and least judgmental friend a home cook could want.
MY REVIEW: The luscious Plum Tart on the cover of Alana Chernila's "The Homemade Kitchen: Recipes for Cooking with Pleasure" immediately caught my eye--such a beautiful temptation for all the senses. This book is a followup to Ms. Chernila's very well-received "The Homemade Pantry: 101 Foods You Can Stop Buying and Start Making". The author writes as though she was speaking directly with the reader, across the table, sharing her life and outlook on food and other subjects. Exploring options for new food experiences is encouraged, and imperfect experiments are perfectly acceptable. Chapters are organized by the author's own thought processes, such as: "Be a Beginner"; "Use Your Scraps"; "Slow Down"; "Do Your Best and Then Let Go"; and "Organicish. Locenough. Homemade when I Can. Fresh. Good. Mine". Her 6 Top Tips are: "Do Your Best"; "Don't Be Afraid of Food"; "How to Cook With Kids"; "Make It Yourself"; "Know What to Buy"; and "There's More Than One Way to Roast a Chicken". The emphasis is on simple, homemade, minimally-processed foods to please family, friends, and yourself--the cook in progress. If you are as tempted by that Plum Tart as I am, then you will also enjoy delicious dishes like these: "Queen Garlic with Chèvre and Tomatoes"; "Cinnamon Swirl Bread"; "Asparagus Carbonara"; "Rhubarb Snacking Cake"; "Easy Coq au Vin with Buttermilk Spaetzle"; "Panzanella"; "Stuffed Tomatoes"; "Spicy Pumpkin Hot Chocolate"; "Platter Salads"; "Popovers"; "Summer Trifle"; "Sesame Noodles"; "Stuffed Winter Squash"; "Broccoli Raab with Cheddar Polenta"; "Roasted Red Pepper Corn Chowder"; Sesame Noodles"; "Corn and Nectarine Salad"; and "Sausage Bread Pudding". Written and shared with great love of subject, "The Homemade Kitchen" will inspire seasoned chefs, novice cooks, and all of us who love the encompassing philosophy of great food. Alana Chernila writes, cooks, teaches cheese making, preserving, and other workshops, and blogs at EatingFromTheGroundUp.com. She has also written for Martha Stewart Living magazine, Taproot, Food52.com, and many other online and print periodicals. Alana Chernila lives with her husband and daughters in Western Massachusetts.
Book Copy Gratis Clarkson Potter Publishers via Blogging for Books
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