• Eat Your Books

  See Lisa Is Cooking's review of this cookbook and her take on a sample recipe.

• SueLau on December 03, 2024

  1d

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Chicken with dumplings

  • Rlancto on January 20, 2026

    Overall a classic version of chicken and dumplings. Cooking the whole chicken with the extra wing pieces gives the broth pure chicken flavor. The dumpling dough is very simple to put together. Perfect for a cold evening meal.

• Damson preserves

  • Bloominanglophile on October 06, 2013

    This is the exact same recipe as the one in In Pursuit of Flavor, where I have also added a note. Don't overcook the plums--this jam jells quickly. The pits are left in for flavor, but they can be a bit of a nuisance to pick out of the jars!

• Glazed carrots

  • Bloominanglophile on October 06, 2013

    I gave this 4 stars back in 1995, with the note that my husband would like them without sugar. I would definitely reduce the amount nowadays, as my tastes have changed since then, but I still think they need at least a smidge of sugar (otherwise they are just buttered carrots, not glazed ones in my opinion).

  • sarah_tptfm6 on April 06, 2026

    These honestly rocked, super simple and delicious

• Lima beans in cream

  • mcvl on May 14, 2020

    Luckily, I've always felt that dried beans are like money in the bank, so when Covid confinement began I was already well stocked. (Rancho Gordo is currently sold out of */everything/*.) I cooked dried lima beans in a broth made from braised lamb shoulder with many Middle Eastern herbs, then, at Edna Lewis's suggestion, ate the beans with cream. Wowsa.

  • redbird on December 10, 2025

    Interesting side dish. Used RG baby green lima beans cooked with onions and carrots. Added a bit of dried thyme to cream. Will definitely make again.

• New cabbage with scallions

  • Dannausc on January 09, 2021

    Super easy. I liked it, but my wife didn’t care for it.

• Salad of Grand Rapids lettuce leaves and romaine

  • MissKoo on March 22, 2024

    A particularly fresh and vibrant simple green salad. Used romaine and locally available curly green lettuce since the specific lettuce mentioned wasn't available. The recipe does not specify what kind of vinegar to use so I chose an artisanal Italian "Vinagro di Pinot Grigio" from the local culinary shop. The dressing is simply vinegar, salt, pepper, and sugar. No oil. And salad can be dressed up to an hour before serving. This was made for a cookbook dinner based on Edna Lewis's recipes. Everyone thought the salad was an excellent palate cleanser and the flavor of the dressing notably enhanced by not having oil in it. Will definitely keep this recipe in mind for dinner parties, brunches, and simple suppers for one or two.

• Warm gingerbread with sweetened whipped cream

  • LumiCooks on January 21, 2026

    I left out the lard completely, and used Grandma’s Original molasses, per recent David Lebovitz newsletter suggestion. Turned out great!

• Food52 by Celia Sack

  Edna's recipes and writings about Southern cookery make me want to be a better cook. My favorite of her recipes is the Pan-fried Sweet Potatoes.

  Full review

• Food52

  Originally published in the 1970s, Lewis’ watershed book on the Southern kitchen captures a seasonally and regionally driven cuisine of generations past...relevant to today’s home cook.

  Full review