by
3.85 of 5 stars
Typical books about preserving garden produce nearly always assume that modern "kitchen gardeners" will boil or freeze their vegetables and fruits.... read full description

reviews

Sep 07, 2010
Randy rated it: 5 of 5 stars
A must have in my reference library. I'm anxious to try a number of recipes and storage techniques that go way beyond canning and freezing. The book talks about storage methods using salt, oil, sugar, alcohol, vinegar, drying, cold storage and latic fermentation.

Looking forward to trying this one, for example:

"Nasturtium Seed Capers,
Toward the of summer collect the green seeds from nasturtiums that have lost their blossoms. Put these in a jar along with dill More...
Jan 12, 2012
Cass rated it: 3 of 5 stars
The year I grew 30 cabbages in my garden, I tried making sauerkraut. It was good but too salty for our palates. If I had tried one of the recipes in this book, we may have like it better.

This book is full of the 'old' ways of preserving food while retaining nutrients. Those of us who have been taught food preservation by canning and freezing might have a hard time eating green bean that are preserved by lactic fermination: String the beans, place them uncooked in jars and cover with co More...
Jul 14, 2010
Kathy rated it: 5 of 5 stars
Can't wait to own this book and to try some of the recipes. there are many wonderful techniques in this book for preserving food without freezing or canning. I will definitely be trying some of them with my tomatoes and peppers harvest this fall. I have yet to try any of the recipes, but, unlike other reviewers, I have no fears about preserving food with the methods described in this book as humans have been using these methods WAY longer than refrigerators have been in existence.
Jul 02, 2010
Thomasin rated it: 4 of 5 stars
"Celebrating traditional but little-known French techniques for storing and preserving edibles..." Very interesting stuff in here! Drying, packing in oil, lactic fermentation, preserving with salt or sugar: this book has ideas for saving your garden's produce that I've never heard of in any other book. I'm eager to try out the directlons/recipes this year.
Feb 17, 2009
Betsy marked it as to-read
got putting food by at a used book sale and it promptly scared the crap out of me. I immediately gave it to Greta, because she is braver than me in the kitchen. This one looks a little less intimidating - although it is French and they are super particular about their food, you know.
May 25, 2011
Emily Mellow rated it: 3 of 5 stars
I really liked the emphasis on preserving nutrition and vitality in foods. I am definitely making sun-dried tomatoes this summer, and I'm going to try more lacto-fermented veggies, including pickles. There were a lot of good ideas, but sadly no pictures. All the ideas were sent in by readers, and some may be questionable. Still, a great way to preserve family recipes and local preservation customs.
Jun 30, 2009
Ethicurean rated it: 4 of 5 stars
Ethicurean review of this title and several others on preserving: "I can, you can, we all can!: Essential books for preserving seasonal bounty"
Jan 23, 2012
Kearstin rated it: 4 of 5 stars
I'm reading this one like a magazine, slowly turning the pages on road trips, remembering I have ten minutes and need a distraction - why not learn how to build a root cellar or dry some apples?
Nov 12, 2008
Amy rated it: 4 of 5 stars
Okay, this book is soooo fun! I now have raw lemons on my shelf in my cold food storage! Should be good for a "VERY LONG TIME" according to the book. No cooking, no juicing, no peeling! Oh my goodness it was so easy, it was a little scary! OK maybe I'm being a giddy little school girl, but I can't help but be excited by the prospect of a fresh lemons for cooking or just for eating when the famine comes!!!!!
This book teaches about Lactic Fermentation which is preserving foods More...
Nov 01, 2011
Jen rated it: 5 of 5 stars
Great ideas for preserving food without electricity. This book is truly traditional, in that it doesn't cover canning or freezing, unlike most other books on the market about preserving food. Right now I am experimenting mostly with drying food and lactic fermentation (just bought a crock and lid and have the first batch of sauerkraut going). I love the format of this book, drawing upon traditional European "peasant" knowledge-- makes me feel in touch with my ancestors, who probably More...
Oct 10, 2011
Crnbryeggshls rated it: 5 of 5 stars
This book is a fascinating look at traditional methods of food preservation. You'll find it especially useful if you live in an area with winters that regularly drop below freezing.
Jul 17, 2010
Charlene rated it: 4 of 5 stars
Just realized I never posted a review for this. It's a great reference guide for food preservation, lots of interesting ideas and recipes. I think it's fantastic that regional recipes have been preserved this way, and it's also good to see an alternative to freezing/canning that preserves more of the vitamin content.
Oct 27, 2011
Janice rated it: 4 of 5 stars
An important book for anyone interested in self-sufficiency. My only complaint is that some of the recipes are vague.
Sep 30, 2010
Andrea rated it: 3 of 5 stars
Not much new, and I'm going to have to pass when it says to use "just remove the thin layer of mold" ... Yuck!
Oct 13, 2010
Kelly rated it: 4 of 5 stars
This book is definitely on my to buy list - great for food storage and just general information.
Aug 14, 2010
Brad rated it: 4 of 5 stars
Sample recipes: rosehip jam with honey, sauerkraut made from whole cabbages, goat cheese in olive oil, green beans in a salt pot, apples dried with elderflowers, etc.

This book wasn't what I expected, but it's really good nonetheless. It's not a systematic guide to food preservation; it's simply an organized collection of family recipes. The French organic gardening magazine, "Les Quatre Saisons du Jardinage", asked its readers to contribute their traditional recipes for prese More...
Jul 29, 2011
Catherine rated it: 3 of 5 stars
Good resource on canning, and there aren't that many of them
Dec 08, 2009
Diane rated it: 5 of 5 stars
i love cookbooks!
Jul 10, 2011
Leah rated it: 5 of 5 stars
This book is thoroughly awesome. I will be buying this book to place on my bookshelf.
May 19, 2009
G rated it: 4 of 5 stars
A great resource. The book is a compilation of many people giving their traditional methods. Some as simple as stringing apples slices on a string to dry. I have had fantastic results drying many foods with wood frame/black window screen frames we put together. I ran across a recommendation for the book from a site I was using for more Weston A Price 'style' recipes. I'm definitely enjoying these new foods.
Dec 30, 2011
Jeffrey rated it: 3 of 5 stars
This is more of a recipe book than a book on techniques. There are load of variants, but no information on generalizing the techniques. It might be because you can sort of make stuff up as you go, I'd worry about making up something that has to sit for a month before you can test the results, especially when food safety might be an issue.
Jun 30, 2009
Autumn rated it: 3 of 5 stars
Good ideas to try.
May 25, 2011
Lisa rated it: 4 of 5 stars
Excellent advice for sustainable, low-energy methods of traditional food preservation. I'm going to try many of these methods this fall! Since I have built a very functional root cellar, I am thrilled to have this useful advice for how to use it well (as well as many other preservation methods which involve oil, salt, vinegar, etc.).
May 11, 2010
Gentlyferal rated it: 5 of 5 stars
You can preserve tomatoes for months, on the plant, by uprooting in early autumn, wrapping each tomato in paper, and hanging the plant upside down indoors. Who knew? I'll try it with *one* plant. I learned this in the first 15 minutes. I think I'll read up on natural, sugar-free jams next. I'm probably going to buy this book.
Oct 14, 2009
K. added it
Just got this about 1/2 hour ago and already disappointed. I was hoping to learn how to preserve meat by salting etc. Not one mention of meat, period. Lots of fruits and veggies though. Hope one of my other new books has the meat info I wanted.
Jun 15, 2009
Michelle rated it: 4 of 5 stars
It was great to read about traditional methods of preserving foods! Sun dried tomatoes and garlic in oil sounds like something I might try this summer.
Nov 01, 2011
Emily rated it: 5 of 5 stars
I learned that I know very little about proper food care! Made me blush. ;-) But extremely practical, one I will buy and keep for reference!
Dec 15, 2009
Becky rated it: 5 of 5 stars
Another cool book. How did people store food before refridgerator, freezers, and bottling? I'm excited to learn more from this book.
Apr 01, 2010
Madam rated it: 1 of 5 stars
Very basic and simplistic. Recommend getting it from the library before you think about buying it.
May 27, 2009
Julie rated it: 4 of 5 stars
I enjoyed this book-- very interesting and informative!