BOOKS Literature on our favorite topics- food, farms, and cuisine.
Wine Wise: Your Complete Guide to Understanding, Selecting, and Enjoying Wine
by Steven Kolpan, Brian H. Smith, and Michael A. Weiss
There are, no doubt, plenty of us normal mortals who have taken small sips out of the monumental and widely praised Exploring Wine: The Culinary Institute of America's Guide to Wines of the World (Wiley, 2001; $65 hardcover), by Steven Kolpan, Brian Smith and Michael Weiss. Considered a definitive work since it was first published (a third edition is in the works), Exploring Wine is aimed at professionals and would-be professionals--it is, as they say, a heavy read. Well, the CIA professors have come back with a new book aimed directly at wine-loving consumers with no ambitions to become sommeliers, collectors or connoisseurs but, nonetheless, want to know what wine to look for (including how to read the label), how to enjoy it, where to find it and when (much as Kolpan does for Valley Table readers in his "By the Glass" column). The scale of Wine Wise is human, not Olympic; the tone is conversational, not professional. The book should help make the appreciation and intelligent enjoyment of wine a realistic ambition for those of us who keep wine in the basement, not a cellar.
Blue Eggs & Yellow Tomatoes
by Jeanne Kelley
Jeanne Kelley's new book is filled with stunning photographs and compelling recipes. The author lives in Los Angeles but keeps a backyard garden, a flock of Araucana chickens (hence the blue eggs), a pet goat and a community garden plot. Kelley's recipes inspire, and most can be tweaked to fit whatever arrived in the CSA share or is growing in your garden. Rounding out the book nicely is Kelley's index of items she believes no kitchen should be without, as well as simple guides on composting, raising backyard chickens and working with community gardens.
Milk: The Surprising Story of Milk through the Ages
by Anne Mendelson
Anne Mendelson, who helped found the Culinary Historians of New York, digs into the full story of milk, from the first time humans likely milked an animal to the extensive dairy traditions of India, Turkey, Greece and Afghanistan, the creation of the modern dairy industry and the current resurgence of real, pure dairy products and small-scale farming. More than 120 recipes from Indian lassis to beef Stroganoff, milk toast, clotted cream and even hot chocolate (to which she devotes a page and a half) accompany Mendelson's lively history of our first food.
The Heirloom Tomato from Garden to Table: Recipes, Portraits and History of the World's Most Beautiful Fruit
by Amy Goldman
Goldman explores the storied history of the tomato and highlights nearly 200 heirloom varieties, all grown in her own extensive garden in Rhinebeck. For the gourmand, there are 50 straightforward recipes; for the gardener, a simple yet comprehensive guide to growing your own. Goldman has again paired up with Victor Schrager, whose beautiful still life photos illustrate the book from cover to cover.
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ARTICLES Magazine and internet literature on our favorite topics- food, farms, and cuisine.
Meet Janet Crawshow of The Valley Table and read what she has to say about The Valley Table, Hudson Valley agriculture, and Hudson Valley Restaurant Week. Full article...
