Notes about Recipes in this book

• Spaghetti with arugula carbonara

  • claire_txa051 on May 16, 2026

    It was an ok carbonara but a good use of a full clamshell of greens. Start boiling your water first.

• Baby lettuce salad with avocado dressing

  • sheepishjen on June 10, 2017

    Nice dressing. Only use half the salt - it calls for a teaspoon, which is too much, and I like salt.

• Rhubarb-sour cream crostata

  • Breadcrumbs on June 13, 2012

    p. 21 Mmmm, so delicious! This was a huge hit and I used a store-bought crust (PC Puff Pastry). We loved the rich flavour that the sour cream brought to the dish and having a chunkier rhubarb than I’m accustomed to using in a tart was nice as well. I’m loving this book for it’s unique recipes. I did need to adjust the cooking time – my tart was finished in 30 mins. I used lime zest in place of the lemon. I’m making another one tonight! Photos here: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/848094#7398241

  • Cheri on September 23, 2012

    Had a fight with the crust. Didn't get enough to fold over top, but baked anyway. Had to add a few strawberries to get to 5 cups of fruit. Substituted cream fraiche for the sour cream. REALLY soupy, but good flavor. Baked for 45 min. Loved the flavor combination, but needed to eat with a spoon!

  • TheCulinaryLibrarian on June 04, 2015

    I haven't made this with the rhubarb yet - but I love this recipe for the crust! I make it for both sweet and savory tarts/pies/crostata's and it works perfectly. A few summer's ago I did a ricotta-zucchini filling and it was divine.

  • bching on May 09, 2016

    crust did not work well for me and I won't make this again; the filling was okay but I have better rhubarb options than this.

• Lemon pudding cake

  • DKennedy on April 02, 2014

    gluten free

• Mustard-garlic chicken paillards with spring peas and lemon

  • Breadcrumbs on June 10, 2012

    p. 32 - The photography in the book is lovely and that's what initially drew me to this recipe. An artistic arrangement of peas cascading over perfectly grilled chicken all laid out on a white plate...the dish really popped off the page. While mine may not have been so pretty, it was indeed tasty...especially the mélange of peas. The lemon really enhanced the sweet, fresh flavours of the peas and made the dish in my view. Next time around I'd marinade the chicken for a longer duration, as I didn't feel the flavours of the mustard mixture really came through. That said the chicken provided the perfect canvas for the peas to shine. Great dish! Photos here: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/848094#7392769

• Asparagus and baby potato roast

  • Breadcrumbs on June 13, 2012

    p. 36 This was a perfect vegetable dish. We love roasted veggies and this combo was wonderful. We especially liked the idea of slicing the potatoes. Not only did they cook quicker but they were also crispier. What takes this from delicious to remarkable is the dressing. It really seemed to enhance the fresh flavours of the veggies. We wished I’d made more!! Photos here: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/848094#7398241

• Pasta with garlic-scape pesto

  • Breadcrumbs on June 23, 2012

    p. 52 Another hit from this book! We can’t seem to get enough of garlic scapes when they’re available and though I have a favourite GS Pesto recipe, I was keen to try this version since it called for pistachios instead of the usual pine nuts. We thoroughly enjoyed this version and in fact, we preferred the pistachios, which imparted more of a nutty flavour to the dish and somehow made it seem heartier. Fresh pod peas, sugar snap peas and cremini also went into the dish. Next time I think I'd add some basil into the pesto mix to further enhance the fresh flavours. Excellent!

  • lorloff on June 17, 2018

    Made this several times included basil from the garden. The pistachios add real depth to the dish. Will make when ever garlic scapes are in season.

• Pasta with radishes and blue cheese

  • Breadcrumbs on June 24, 2012

    p. 54 This most unusual combination of ingredients is what attracted me to this dish. Radishes, their greens, onion, garlic and bacon are combined with crumbled blue cheese and toasted breadcrumbs to form a sauce for spaghetti. Although I selected a mild Danish blue and used half the quantity suggested, unfortunately we found that the blue cheese simply overpowered all the other ingredients and ruined this meal for us. That said, I’m still intrigued enough to give this another shot and will taste as I go while adding blue cheese in small amounts. Photos here: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/799537#7421094

• Garlic-pesto roast chicken

  • Christine on June 21, 2014

    I'm a bit embarrassed to admit this is the first roast chicken I have ever made. Had to use a 4.5 lb chicken instead of 3.5 because we couldn't find anything smaller which increased the cook time. This recipe really wasn't difficult, but the end result wasn't as flavorful as we hoped. The meat stayed fairly moist which was great and it was a good use of garlic scapes from the CSA, but I will continue looking for other roast chicken recipes to try. This definitely isn't "the one" for us.

• Honey-jalapeño chicken tenders

  • Breadcrumbs on June 20, 2012

    p. 56 Excellent! We’ll definitely be making these again through the summer months. Sweet, slightly hot, tender and juicy – what’s not to love about these. I used 2 jalapenos vs the 6 suggested in the book as my peppers were surprisingly hot. When I make these again I’ll serve some warm chili-spiked honey drizzled over top to further enhance the flavours. We loved this dish. Photos here: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/799537#7412640

• Turkey-bacon burgers

  • julesamomof2 on June 24, 2018

    This sounded amazing on paper, but after trying these, we all realized we really don't like bacon that isn't crisp. Instead of adding moistness, the bacon was kind of flabby and made the burgers greasy. I will keep looking for the perfect turkey no-cheese turkey burger.

• Grilled filet mignon with summer herb sauce

  • Breadcrumbs on June 24, 2012

    p. 122 Delicious. The light, fresh-tasting and somewhat tangy herb sauce is a perfect partner for the rich, smoky flavours of the grilled filets. I’ve made something similar from an old Gourmet recipe on Epi but this seemed to trump that dish and I’ll definitely make this again. This would be perfect with a whole grilled tenderloin as you could slice it and serve it buffet style with the sauce on the side or, drizzled atop – hot or, at room temperature. Perfect summer food. Love that sauce!! Photos here: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/799537#7421094

• Easy sautéed chard

  • adrienneyoung on October 29, 2014

    I prefer the sautéed swiss chard from "Craft of Cooking". My bacon overwhelms the swiss chard, somehow…

• Grilled zucchini with fresh tomato vinaigrette

  • Breadcrumbs on August 07, 2012

    p. 131 I can’t believe we took a vacation from this cookbook because my first return visit was such a huge success that it made the remaining dishes we had tonight pale in comparison. I simply love this book and it will now be my first stop when looking for recipes to use seasonal ingredients this summer & autumn. Neither component to this dish is earth-shatteringly unique on its own but somehow the combination is just fabulous. The surprising element in the vinaigrette is the use of lime juice and it worked beautifully with the tomatoes and onions adding a salsa-like flavour to a dish that otherwise was reminiscent of Italian dishes we’ve enjoyed. Photos here: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/799537#7509888

• Coriander seed-cornmeal fried chicken

  • DKennedy on April 02, 2014

    gluten free

• The best meat loaf

  • adrienneyoung on November 02, 2014

    This is virtually the same recipe as the meatloaf in the feb 2008 gourmet magazine. (same author, lest anyone wonder!). There is one difference: magazine version includes 1/4 tsp ground allspice. I like the allspice but with or without, this is worthy meatloaf!

  • adrienneyoung on February 14, 2016

    Still a favorite. But in a new city, note to self: find great double smoked bacon. It makes a big difference. And make sure to use fresh allspice (1/2 tsp) as recommended in the Epicurious version. Also, salt the veg while they are sautéeing.

• Garlic-roasted Brussels chips

  • claire_txa051 on April 10, 2026

    I think I sliced these too thin on the mandoline but otherwise flavor was simple but good. What I made ended up basically shaved roasted Brussels.

• Chicken with a ton of garlic

  • claire_txa051 on March 29, 2026

    Flavor was excellent but time was way off for my oven, needed 20-30 more. Made the BEST chicken skin!

• Huffington Post

  ...draws deeply on the food grown there for this collection, a charming meander through culinary terrain... A good choice if you're feeling you've lost a little of your drive in the kitchen.

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• Fine Cooking

  Through beautifully written stories and pitch-perfect recipes, Ian Knauer, a former Gourmet magazine food editor, vividly evokes a year of toil and terrific meals at his family’s farm...

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