Cooking from the Garden

by Rosalind Creasy

A gardening expert demonstrates how to grow and prepare fresh foods from seventeen savory theme gardens--including Italian, French, edible flower, and heirloom gardens--covering such meals as Shotgun Willie Chili and Stir-Fried Chicken with Golden Needles. Tour.

Genres: Gardening, Cookbooks, Nonfiction, Cooking

547 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1988

About the author

Rosalind Creasy is a garden and food writer, photographer, landscape designer, lecturer and consultant. She is the author of several books, including The Complete Book of Edible Landscaping, Cooking From the Garden, Edible Gardening, The Complete Book of Edible Landscaping and Edible Landscaping. Her writing has also appeared in national publications such as the Los Angeles Times and Gardening How-To, where she writes regular columns, and Garden Design.

Reviews

[Aurora · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a treasure. I skimmed the whole thing in mere days and now plan on opening it every day to come. There’s so much in it. What a delight!

[Kay · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this for myself shortly before my son was born 18 years ago, and I'd have to say it's one of the best presents I've ever given myself. Creasey's book singlehandedly inspired me to plant my first significant garden, not to mention launched a decade-long fascination with canning vegetables and combining edible and ornamental plants in the garden.

The book explores different kinds of gardens -- Native American gardens, French gardens, herb gardens, and so on -- and is a revelation in that these gardens are both practical and gorgeous. There is a general discussion of each type of garden and the plants grown in it as well as imaginative recipes for different cuisines.

My only complaint, really, is that this book is too nice to take into the kitchen. Now that I have a copier/scanner, though, it occurs to me that I could just copy the recipe pages that interest me. Hmmmm...

[Miriam · Rating 5 out of 5]

[Based on the hardbound book]

This is a wonderful book packed with recipes and gardening advice. The book is broken down into five parts. The first three parts are a about creating specific gardens and contains recipies based on what is grown in that type of garden. At the end of each garden section is a list of sources including seed companies and books. The fourth part of the book is an encyclopedia of vegetables with informaton on how much effort the vegetable takes to grow, a brief description of characteristics, then each listing has specifics that include growing, pests, harvesting, varieties, and preserving. Part five contains information on planting, pests, suppliers, and a massive index.

This has been one of my go-to books for the last 20 years and it has never failed me yet!

[Christina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is way more than a cookbook. In fact, I would say the cooking part is almost the afterward of each section. I enjoyed the profiles and especially the pictures. A garden book without pictures just doesn't cut if for me.

[June · Rating 5 out of 5]

An oldie but goodie. Lots of basics and some inspirational gardens and dishes. The Burpee and American chapters remind me of what folks are when I was a kid.

[Shelley Cramm · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great reference! A must for the garden library. Rosalind Creasy is a pioneer and has helped guide me into cooking from the garden as a way of life.