Synopses & Reviews
Praise for PRAIRIE HOME COOKING “For those of us who grew up with cherry trees and fresh raspberries, corn and tomatoes fresh from the garden, bushels full of peaches and apricots from the farmers market, and all those homemade layer cakes, pies, and yeast rolls, Prairie Home Cooking is much more than a nostalgic journey. It is pure inspiration, encouragement to head back into the kitchen and recreate the bliss of our childhood.” (Patricia Wells) "Prairie Home Cooking celebrates the enduring connection between food and place in the Midwest. The dramatically changing seasons and the generous spirit of the people of this vast and varied region are reflected here in an abundance of evocative recipes." (Justin Rashid, President, American Spoon Foods)
Review
"
Prairie Home Breads is packed with interesting breads and fascinating stories from the Heartland. These unique, traditional breads should be lovingly made at home and shared with family and friends. You'll never find them in a bakery. Create your own baking traditions using Judith Fertig's inspiring recipes." --Amy Scherber, author of
Amy's Breads and owner of Amy's Breads, New York City
“Prairie Home Breads reminds me again of what it is that makes bread so special—its ability to connect us to something deep inside. Whether a taste memory or that warm place of comfort, bread, and certainly these breads from our own prairie Heartland, expand our awareness of the universal implications of that simple, but infinitely profound, staff of life.”—Peter Reinhart, author of The Bread Baker’s Apprentice and Bread Upon the Waters
“Prairie Home Breads is a deceptively humble title for a fascinating book of modern homemade breads infused with the flavor of yesteryear. America’s Heartland has been almost a secret cache of enviable breadbakers and Judith Fertig has given us a taste: family recipes, bakery specialties, a sense of place, a who’s who on the baking scene. Maybe we don’t grow our own wheat or churn our own butter anymore, but we can most certainly bake our own bread with the heart-to-heart soul of American bakers in every loaf.”—Beth Hensperger, author of The Bread Lover’s Bread Machine Cookbook and The Best Quick Breads
Review
"Thsi book is jam-packed with American heritage recipes, each one more delicious-sounding than the next!" --Gale Gand, executive pastry chef at Tru and host of the Food Network's
Sweet Dreams "Seductive and compulsively readable . . . Fertig has compiled an exhaustive and valuable collection of American recipes and the lore behind them that will as likely and up on your bedside table as your kitchen counter." --Regan Daley, author of In the Sweet Kitchen
"A significant addition to the sweet subject of desserts, Judith Fertig's American Desserts does not miss a step as it marches along detailing just about any dessert worth preparing and pleasurably consuming." --Marcel Desaulniers, author of Death by Chocolate
Synopsis
The food of the Midwest is the flavor of America itself, a marriage of tradition and innovation, comfort and creativity, abundence and thrift. in Prairie Home Cooking, Judith Fertig serves up a warmhearted invitation to savor the best flavors of America's breadbasket.
Synopsis
400 Recipes that Celebrate the Bountiful Harvests, Creative Cooks, and Comforting Foods of the American Heartland
Synopsis
The food of the Heartland is comfort food - and is certainly back in style. Judith Fertig interprets and perfects 400 homespun classics of the prairie table, from Homesteaders' Bean Soup to Breslauer Steaks and Chicken and Wild Rice Hot Dish. She serves up new dishes like Walleye Pike with Fennel and Herbs and Herb-Crusted Loin of Veal. Also included are the very best ethnic dishes, such as Bohemian Spaetzle, Czech Potato Dumplings, and Swedish Turnip and Carrot Charlotte.
Synopsis
350 recipes for BBQ and grilling with simple and clean technique instructions.
Synopsis
Prairie Home Breads proves that not only is the Midwest where Americas grains are grown, but its also where the art of bread baking is taken seriously.
To create these 150 recipes, Judith M. Fertig visited artisanal bakeries, working farmhouse kitchens, rural church suppers, urban bakeries, farmers markets, and typical home kitchens. She found yeast breads as varied as Amish Pinwheel Bread and Roasted Sweet Pepper Bread, as well as naturally leavened breads like Brewhouse Bread and whole grain breads like Northern Prairie Barley Bread. There are also buns and rolls, as well as quick biscuits, popovers, and crackers. Along with elegant tea breads and homey muffins there are scrumptious coffeecakes, kuchens, and strudels. Last but not least, there are recipes for accompaniments and for using up leftovers.
Prairie Home Breads is also filled with rich stories of ethnic and regional culture, agriculture, Midwestern culinary traditions, and warm celebrations of Heartland food.
Synopsis
100 easy-to-make, versatile recipes for weeknight dinners on the grill.
Synopsis
400 star-spangled, razzle-dazzle recipes for America's best loved desserts.
Synopsis
The be-all, end-all BBQ party guide; with full color photos throughout.
Synopsis
Theres something fishy going on - on the grill, that is. Thats a good thing, when were talking grilled seafood. Its easy to cook up great fish and shellfish on the grill, once youve mastered the essentials. Lucky for you, youve found those essentials, right here in this book. With this handy guide by your side, you wont be fishing for compliments - theyll swim right up to you. Go fish, anyone?
Recipes in this handy volume include Grilled Tilapia with Spicy Lemon Pepper Rub, Asian Tuna Burgers with Wasabi Mayo, Herb-Grilled John Dory with Rosemary Aioli, Pernod-Buttered Lobster Tail, and Grilled Crab Cakes with Chile-Lime Sauce.
Synopsis
Got wood? You should. Cooking on a plank is the simplest way to infuse your food with the subtle taste and aroma of smoke. Best part is, you dont need a fancy rig, special equipment, or complicated directions to start planking. All you really need is a board and this book. With the 25 essential techniques youll find in these pages, youll be planking like a pro in no time—outdoors and in. This book features tempting fare such as Griddle-Planked Brie with Amaretto-Peach Chutney and Cranberry Conserve, Plank-Roasted Pears with Blue Cheese, Cheese- and Herb-Stuffed Planked Portobello Mushrooms, and Garlic and Rosemary-Slathered Planked Pork Chops. Armed with this concise and handy primer, anyone can become a planking and grilling pro in no time!
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. 418-419) and index.
About the Author
Judith M. Fertig is a bestselling and award-winning cookbook author. She lives in Shawnee Mission, Kansas, where she develops recipes that celebrate the rich culinary traditions of the Heartland. A recognized authority on regional Midwestern cuisine and an experienced cookbook author and food writer, she has studied at the Cordon Bleu in London and La Varenne in Paris. Prairie Home Breads follows Fertig's definitive Prairie Home Cooking, a collection of recipes inspired by the abundant produce of the Midwestern states, including wild and heirloom fruits and vegetables, game, grains, and beef. The bestselling Prairie Home Cooking was a 1999 nominee for both the IACP Cookbook Award and the James Beard Book Award. Fertig is also the author of the award-winning Pure Prairie: Farm Fresh and Wildly Delicious Foods from the Prairie, as well as several books on barbeque with coauthor Karen Adler. In addition to these cookbooks, Fertig wrote the Great Plains chapter of the American version of Culinaria, a two-volume book on American culinary traditions. She is a contributor to numerous distinguished magazines and newspapers, including the New York Times, the London Sunday Times, the San Francisco Chronicle, Saveur, Santé, Country Living, and Country Home. Fertig was inspired to write the Prairie Home cookbooks while living in London. Although she had lived and traveled all over the Midwest, living abroad gave her a new perspective, revealing the Midwest as a region of culinary innovation, cultural diversity, and fresh and varied native foods and produce. Looking at this familiar region from a new perspective allowed Fertig to capture the honest wholesomeness of Midwestern cuisine in her cookbooks. To write Prairie Home Breads, Fertig visited Old World artisanal bakeries, farmhouse kitchens, rural church suppers, community bake sales, bustling urban ethnic bakeries, farmer's markets, and home kitchens throughout the Midwest. Fertig shares her considerable culinary expertise and her appreciation of the Midwestern kitchen in cooking classes and seminars and as a restaurant consultant.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction
Almost Paradise: Fruit Preserves and Desserts
The American Cookie Jar
Let's Eat Cake!
American Pie (and Tarts, and Tartlets, and Pastries)
Custard's Last Stand: Puddings, Custards, Mousses, Flans, and Souffles
We All Scream for Ice Cream
The American Sweet Tooth: Candy and Flavored Syrups
Tisane for Two: Teas, Coolers, and Punches to Enjoy with Your American Dessert
Sources
Select Bibliography
Index