Northwest Essentials emphasizes cooking with the bounty of local and regional ingredients available in the Pacific Northwest. Originally published ten years ago, it was instantly recognized as a classic. With the growing importance of eating locally and in season, Northwest Essentials has been reissued, this time filled with over forty beautiful photographs of the fruits, seafood, mushrooms, lentils, and hazelnuts of the region. But this isn't just a book to make your mouth water; it's a book to cook from - the recipes are elegant, simple, and accessible. Filled with personal stories and nostalgia, chef and author Greg Atkinson lures the reader into each chapter about the Northwest's essential ingredients.
Greg Atkinson was executive chef at Friday Harbor House in the San Juan Islands, executive chef at Canlis in Seattle, and executive chef at Restaurant Marche on Bainbridge Island. The guy can cook. He taught at Seattle Central Community College and the Seattle Culinary Academy. He wrote for the Seattle Times and had a programme on KUOW-FM for many years. The guy can teach and write. This cookbook is one of the most used in my kitchen because it relates to the foods and seasons of Western Washington which is where I cook. His recipes are illuminated by delightful stories of how he learned what he has learned and where he found many of the ingredients to cook. The text is about 280 pages; the only thing that would make it better would be enlargement.