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Cook Food: A Manualfesto for Easy, Healthy, Local Eating
This rousing call to action for healthy, conscious eating is an inspirational primer for those who want to move beyond packaged and processed food toward a more responsible and sustainable way of eating. Many people are learning about the political ramifications of what they eat, but don't know how to change their habits or expand their kitchen repertoire to include meatless dishes. This compendium offers a straightforward overview of the political issues surrounding food, and a culinary toolkit to put principles into practice. Without resorting to faux meat, fake cheese, or obscure ingredients, the recipes focus on fresh, local, minimally processed ingredients that sustain farmers, animals, and the entire food chain. Instead of a rigid set of recipes to be replicated, it offers tips for improvisation, creative thinking in the kitchen, practical suggestions for cooking on a budget, and quick and delicious vegan and vegetarian meal options for anyone who wants to eat fast, tasty, nutritious food every day.
136 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2009
About the author
Lisa Jervis
6 books79 followersLisa Jervis is the founding editor and publisher of Bitch: Feminist Response to Pop Culture, a national nonprofit quarterly magazine offering feminist commentary on our intensely mediated world. She is also a founding board member of the media training and advocacy organization Women in Media and News. Her work has appeared in numerous magazines and books, including Ms., the San Francisco Chronicle, Utne, Mother Jones, the Women's Review of Books, Bust, Hues, Salon, Girlfriends, Punk Planet, Body Outlaws (Seal Press), LiP: Informed Revolt, and The Bust Guide to the New Girl Order (Penguin). She is the co-editor of Young Wives' Tales: New Adventures in Love and Partnership (Seal Press) and Bitchfest: Ten Years of Cultural Criticism from the Pages of Bitch Magazine. She’s currently working on a cookbook and a book about the intellectual legacy of gender essentialism and its effect on contemporary feminism.
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
June 1, 2009
Of course I give it 5 stars, I wrote it...
September 17, 2009
I was lucky enough to read this book while writing my own cookbook. And I have to commend Lisa highly for writing the book I would also have liked to have read and she did it better than I would. Mine would have been twice as long and unnecessarily so.
She does provide recipes, but they should be considered starting points for the new and timid home cook. She thrives on experimentation. She shows off her ability to make simple food seem easy. And it is. Many of her recipes are variations on what I cook myself and how I do it. Her basic philosophy is to keep things simple.
She does also explain how what we eat affects our bodies and our environment and encourages us all to eat as vegan as possible. And I think the "as possible" is what she stressed most often. It's hard for people to give every meat product up all at once. But if we can just try to be mindful,experiment by cooking greens and beans more often, we may just realize that we not only feel better, but we're saving ourselves money, and we're feeling better emotionally about what and how we eat.
The other thing I like is that she explains while she knows that it is easy in San Francisco to shop at a farmer's market, it is hard elsewhere in the country to do so and it can be more expensive. But if we focus on buying more basic foods, more ingredients as opposed to prepared foods, that we actually save money.
After talking with my mother who lives in a small town in Central Ohio, I realized that she may actually be better able to buy local produce than I can. She attends a flea market weekly and farmers from all over the area come to sell breads, jams, eggs, vegetables, fruits, and more. These may not be licensed as organic since most of these farms are very small. But just knowing that she's buying peaches locally instead of from Wal-Mart makes me immensely happy. So buying local produce may be harder, but it may just mean you have to look in places you wouldn't expect.
One of the other things I like about this book, which Lisa has been criticized for, is offering suggestions on how to organize your spices and your kitchen in general. These are actually fantastic tips for someone who fears that they're "doing it all wrong". They're likely not, but they could do it better. Even if Lisa's advice doesn't fit their style, just changing things up a bit may get someone more comfortable in their own kitchen and more able to figure out what would work for them.
She does provide recipes, but they should be considered starting points for the new and timid home cook. She thrives on experimentation. She shows off her ability to make simple food seem easy. And it is. Many of her recipes are variations on what I cook myself and how I do it. Her basic philosophy is to keep things simple.
She does also explain how what we eat affects our bodies and our environment and encourages us all to eat as vegan as possible. And I think the "as possible" is what she stressed most often. It's hard for people to give every meat product up all at once. But if we can just try to be mindful,experiment by cooking greens and beans more often, we may just realize that we not only feel better, but we're saving ourselves money, and we're feeling better emotionally about what and how we eat.
The other thing I like is that she explains while she knows that it is easy in San Francisco to shop at a farmer's market, it is hard elsewhere in the country to do so and it can be more expensive. But if we focus on buying more basic foods, more ingredients as opposed to prepared foods, that we actually save money.
After talking with my mother who lives in a small town in Central Ohio, I realized that she may actually be better able to buy local produce than I can. She attends a flea market weekly and farmers from all over the area come to sell breads, jams, eggs, vegetables, fruits, and more. These may not be licensed as organic since most of these farms are very small. But just knowing that she's buying peaches locally instead of from Wal-Mart makes me immensely happy. So buying local produce may be harder, but it may just mean you have to look in places you wouldn't expect.
One of the other things I like about this book, which Lisa has been criticized for, is offering suggestions on how to organize your spices and your kitchen in general. These are actually fantastic tips for someone who fears that they're "doing it all wrong". They're likely not, but they could do it better. Even if Lisa's advice doesn't fit their style, just changing things up a bit may get someone more comfortable in their own kitchen and more able to figure out what would work for them.
November 14, 2023
i am making one of these recipes tonight >:))
June 1, 2009
I was lucky enough to be a test taster/test reader for this book, and all I can say is "DIY scrumptious."
Lisa's recipes are waaay easy to follow, leave room for a little creativity, and don't require a bunch of esoteric ingredients. More importantly, the end result is crunchy-salty-savory goodness.
This is in stark contrast to those monk monastery cookbooks out there that equate health with cold watery tofu. Or the equally annoying "add a teaspoon of low-fat bottled dressing, mix with plain nonfat yogurt" cookbooks that may as well be titled Weight Loss and Heart Disease Recovery for the Stereotypical American. But I digress.
This book works equally well for those who don't know how to cook, those who only know how to cook stuff they would no longer be caught dead eating, and those who cook all the time but want some new, interesting, and fast recipes.
As well as those who just can't resist anything called a manualfesto.
Lisa's recipes are waaay easy to follow, leave room for a little creativity, and don't require a bunch of esoteric ingredients. More importantly, the end result is crunchy-salty-savory goodness.
This is in stark contrast to those monk monastery cookbooks out there that equate health with cold watery tofu. Or the equally annoying "add a teaspoon of low-fat bottled dressing, mix with plain nonfat yogurt" cookbooks that may as well be titled Weight Loss and Heart Disease Recovery for the Stereotypical American. But I digress.
This book works equally well for those who don't know how to cook, those who only know how to cook stuff they would no longer be caught dead eating, and those who cook all the time but want some new, interesting, and fast recipes.
As well as those who just can't resist anything called a manualfesto.
June 1, 2009
I haven't felt so guilty while reading a book since "Animal Liberation" by Peter Singer. This isn't just a cook book, but a plea for us to be aware of how each of our meals impact the globe and our bodies. Yeah, it's a lot. But Lisa does it with a gentle hammer. And that's what really sold me on the book.
The majority of the book is a cook book and I'm not a cook book grrl. I'm a lazy cook. But I really liked this cook book because it was simple. Not so much the recipes, but the way Lisa explains the reasons why you do this or that while you cook - the procedure of cooking.
I haven't made anything from the book yet, but that's more of a statement on the sorry state of my kitchen than on the recipes. A good hearty trip to the local farmer's market is due!
The majority of the book is a cook book and I'm not a cook book grrl. I'm a lazy cook. But I really liked this cook book because it was simple. Not so much the recipes, but the way Lisa explains the reasons why you do this or that while you cook - the procedure of cooking.
I haven't made anything from the book yet, but that's more of a statement on the sorry state of my kitchen than on the recipes. A good hearty trip to the local farmer's market is due!
November 23, 2022
I thought the techniques and rationales for said techniques were very helpful. Often I’ve wondered why things that seem like ‘extra steps’ are necessary, and clearly from reading the rationales they have purposes that were lost on my attempts to cook as fast as possible. I’ll have to try out some of the recipes.
January 8, 2023
Very cool book about food, cooking, and trying to make the right decisions. Well done.
May 30, 2015
In the past few years we’ve been bombarded with messages about eating organic food and shopping local farmer’s markets. Vegan and vegetarian cookbooks dot our bookstore shelves. And we only need to walk around to find out what overly processed foods are doing to our waistlines and our health. All this information can be overwhelming. Where do we start in improving our food choices?
Thank goodness for Lisa Jervis’ Cook Food: A Manualfesto for Easy, Healthy, Local Eating!
Jervis is like your best foodie friend guiding you in the kitchen. In the first half of the book, she discusses the importance of eating local foods and embracing a meatless diet and manages to do so without getting preachy. She seems to understand that not everyone has access to farmers’ markets, and some people can’t give up an occasional burger. She also tells the reader the kitchen equipment and ingredients they should have on hand. Most of us probably have a majority of these things in our kitchens already, and the rest aren’t hard to find.
Cook Food also gives tips and techniques for cooking. Confused about sautéing, steaming and blanching? Jervis tells you how to use these methods in a way that is easy to follow. She also discusses things like adding spices and herbs (both dried and fresh) to your dishes, plus how to brown, deglaze and prepare tofu and the easiest way to peel garlic.
Now we get to the fun part, the recipes. I feared they would be flavorless and bland but just reading them made my mouth water. Spices and herbs play a big part in the recipes, and Jervis allows for a lot of flexibility to suit your taste buds. Cook Food recipes includes everything from main meals to side dishes and yes, desserts.
One of my favorite go to recipes is its corn, tomato and basil salad, which I love to make when both sweet corn and tomaotoes are at their peak. And as for the basil, well, I have a basil plant on my window sill. Here is the recipe:
Corn, Tomato and Basil Salad
Ingredients:
3 ears of corn
1 large tomato or two medium, three small, or one basket of cherry tomatoes
1 small handful of torn or chopped basil
1 lemon for both zest and juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Husk the corn. Steam the corn for five minutes in an inch or two of boiling water. Turn once or twice. You can also fully boil the ears of corn. Both methods work.
Place the cobs of corn in the fridge until cool. Cut the kernels off the cobs.
Cut the tomatoes into bite-sized chunks and place in a bowl with the kernels and the basil.
Zest half of the lemon into the bowl. Then juice the lemon into the bowl.
Add the olive oil and toss. Adjust the lemon zest and juice if needed. Add salt and pepper to taste.
There are a lot of variations to this salad. If you’re not a basil fan, you can always another herb. Mint and cilantro are good. You can also add other veggies. I’ve made this salad with cut-up cucumbers and purple onions. If you don’t want to go fully vegan, you can add a bit of feta cheese. Though this is considered a side dish, I’ve often made this salad into a meal with toasted pita bread or cheese and crackers.
Jervis also provides helpful resources for everything from vegan cooking, food politics and social issues to gardening, local farming and activism (including a shout-out to Milwaukee’s very own Growing Power).
Jervis’ writing style is very engaging and down-to-earth. She never lectures, but only inspires. Cook Food: A Manualfesto for Easy, Healthy, Local Eating is the perfect primer for both budding foodies and experienced gourmands alike.
Originally Published at the Book Self:
https://thebookselfblog.wordpress.com...
Thank goodness for Lisa Jervis’ Cook Food: A Manualfesto for Easy, Healthy, Local Eating!
Jervis is like your best foodie friend guiding you in the kitchen. In the first half of the book, she discusses the importance of eating local foods and embracing a meatless diet and manages to do so without getting preachy. She seems to understand that not everyone has access to farmers’ markets, and some people can’t give up an occasional burger. She also tells the reader the kitchen equipment and ingredients they should have on hand. Most of us probably have a majority of these things in our kitchens already, and the rest aren’t hard to find.
Cook Food also gives tips and techniques for cooking. Confused about sautéing, steaming and blanching? Jervis tells you how to use these methods in a way that is easy to follow. She also discusses things like adding spices and herbs (both dried and fresh) to your dishes, plus how to brown, deglaze and prepare tofu and the easiest way to peel garlic.
Now we get to the fun part, the recipes. I feared they would be flavorless and bland but just reading them made my mouth water. Spices and herbs play a big part in the recipes, and Jervis allows for a lot of flexibility to suit your taste buds. Cook Food recipes includes everything from main meals to side dishes and yes, desserts.
One of my favorite go to recipes is its corn, tomato and basil salad, which I love to make when both sweet corn and tomaotoes are at their peak. And as for the basil, well, I have a basil plant on my window sill. Here is the recipe:
Corn, Tomato and Basil Salad
Ingredients:
3 ears of corn
1 large tomato or two medium, three small, or one basket of cherry tomatoes
1 small handful of torn or chopped basil
1 lemon for both zest and juice
2 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Husk the corn. Steam the corn for five minutes in an inch or two of boiling water. Turn once or twice. You can also fully boil the ears of corn. Both methods work.
Place the cobs of corn in the fridge until cool. Cut the kernels off the cobs.
Cut the tomatoes into bite-sized chunks and place in a bowl with the kernels and the basil.
Zest half of the lemon into the bowl. Then juice the lemon into the bowl.
Add the olive oil and toss. Adjust the lemon zest and juice if needed. Add salt and pepper to taste.
There are a lot of variations to this salad. If you’re not a basil fan, you can always another herb. Mint and cilantro are good. You can also add other veggies. I’ve made this salad with cut-up cucumbers and purple onions. If you don’t want to go fully vegan, you can add a bit of feta cheese. Though this is considered a side dish, I’ve often made this salad into a meal with toasted pita bread or cheese and crackers.
Jervis also provides helpful resources for everything from vegan cooking, food politics and social issues to gardening, local farming and activism (including a shout-out to Milwaukee’s very own Growing Power).
Jervis’ writing style is very engaging and down-to-earth. She never lectures, but only inspires. Cook Food: A Manualfesto for Easy, Healthy, Local Eating is the perfect primer for both budding foodies and experienced gourmands alike.
Originally Published at the Book Self:
https://thebookselfblog.wordpress.com...
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 7, 2009
A review at Pandagon got me curious/excited about this book, so I ordered a copy for a friend who is looking to learn to cook. It finally arrived yesterday and I've been enjoying looking through it before passing it on to her (and I will undoubtedly be copying down a few recipes, too). There is much to like about this book: it's very small, approachable, and affordable, and it does an excellent job of simplifying the often-intimidating topics of food politics & nutrition. In a brief introduction, Jervis explains her commitment to eating an unprocessed "veganesque" diet. There is a great section on kitchen equipment and pantry stocking, which would probably be particularly helpful to a new cook, and finally the rest of the book is devoted to recipes and ideas for easy, healthy eating. Jervis constantly encourages the reader to improvise, experiment, and substitute seasonal ingredients. And she uses gender-neutral pronouns! What's not to love? I think this is the book I'll turn to from here on out when friends ask me for advice on home cooking and healthy eating.
November 1, 2009
More than just a rousing food manifesto and a nifty set of tools, Cook Food makes preparing tasty, wholesome meals simple and accessible for those hungry for both change and scrumptious fare. If you're used to getting your meals from a package--or the delivery guy--or if you think you don't know how to cook, this is the book for you.
If you want to eat healthier but aren't sure where to start, or if you've been reading about food politics but don't know how to bring sustainable eating practices into your everyday life, Cook Food will give you the scoop on how, while keeping your taste buds satisfied. With a conversational, do-it-yourself vibe, a practical approach to everyday cooking on a budget, and a whole bunch of animal-free recipes, Cook Food will have you cooking up a storm, tasting the difference, thinking globally and eating locally.
If you want to eat healthier but aren't sure where to start, or if you've been reading about food politics but don't know how to bring sustainable eating practices into your everyday life, Cook Food will give you the scoop on how, while keeping your taste buds satisfied. With a conversational, do-it-yourself vibe, a practical approach to everyday cooking on a budget, and a whole bunch of animal-free recipes, Cook Food will have you cooking up a storm, tasting the difference, thinking globally and eating locally.
October 5, 2012
I was sort of put off by this book. I think it could be a really great resource for new cooks. It covers a lot of basic techniques clearly and concisely, is very approachable, and contains some valuable advice. That all said, I found the narrative voice to be irritating. Did I need to know that the author doesn't like dill and thinks pre-ground black pepper tastes like dirt? I understand that she's trying to keep things conversational, but I found comments like those very off putting. I also felt that despite her frequent acknowledgements that she lived in a pretty special and fortunate food environment, her suggestions didn't always reflect that difference.
All in all, this could be a good resource for those just starting their kitchen adventures. It covers a few things well. Not my favorite cooking resource, but definitely usable.
All in all, this could be a good resource for those just starting their kitchen adventures. It covers a few things well. Not my favorite cooking resource, but definitely usable.
July 8, 2009
While healing from a broken foot, relying on friends to bring me the basics of groceries, reading this book inspired wonderful dreams of my revived kitchen. From my couch I made a wish list for my future return trip to the market. It was a long list.
After reading quite a lot about food and food systems/communities, I believe that Jervis' "manuelfesto" fills a needed niche that marries kitchen technique and mindset. Cook Food is a hybrid of a cookbook and collection of essays; a slim book that's perfectly portable and wonderfully narrated; a guidebook for folks who love food and care about its preparation and its provenance.
After reading quite a lot about food and food systems/communities, I believe that Jervis' "manuelfesto" fills a needed niche that marries kitchen technique and mindset. Cook Food is a hybrid of a cookbook and collection of essays; a slim book that's perfectly portable and wonderfully narrated; a guidebook for folks who love food and care about its preparation and its provenance.
January 2, 2012
I've actually read this through cover to cover multiple times, absorbing what's in it. most cookbooks are recipe-centric, but Cook Food is more about cooking theory and about how to approach cooking to maximize certain goals; whole foods, convenience, sustainability (in regards to the cook's energy level as well as the natural world), and health. reading it has helped me clarify my won food values and priorities, which has adjusted the way I shop, cook, and eat. there are also a handful of recipes that I use on a regular basis - and even more so, it's somewhere I turn to when I need a recipe (or at least an idea) for something tasty, quick, and full of actual nutrition.
August 2, 2009
I really enjoyed this book. It made me think about food in a way I never have. Usually, food-related politics is in one ear and out the other with me, but this gave me a lot to think about and discuss with folks.
I haven't tried any of the recipes yet, but I had 4 picked out that I'm going to try over the next week or so. Then I'll write my full review and link to it here.
I haven't tried any of the recipes yet, but I had 4 picked out that I'm going to try over the next week or so. Then I'll write my full review and link to it here.
August 30, 2010
Oops--I must've forgotten to review this after I read it. Some good recipes in here. I particularly liked the lentils with wine (although the two times I've made it, it takes far longer to cook than the time listed in the book). The beans and greens recipes are also tasty and easy.
January 23, 2011
Thanks to Lisa Jervis, I now know how to perfectly roast vegetables! It's hard to believe I spent so many years roasting them at too low a temperature, and wondering why they were mushy. Thank you, Lisa!
Want to Read
August 20, 2009This is so similar to the book that i've been working on, i'm going to have to check it out and make sure i don't duplicate lisa's efforts...
October 4, 2009
Though I got a couple good recipes & techniques out of the book, it's more for beginners, and I'll probably pass it along to the kids. I did like the Chile-style Beans adn Greens recipe, though.
January 24, 2010
An excellent guide to the process of cooking rather than a book of recipes (though it has them too). Teaching you the techniques of cooking and the way flavours and ingredients work together.
April 19, 2010
enjoyable, and based in common sense though important to revisit for we stray so far outside of it for convenience. extremely accessible.
April 26, 2010
Just the book I needed! Useful advice on meal strategies that seem like they'd be easy to put into practice. More of a toolkit than a recipe book.
July 21, 2010
Best book on vegan cooking or cooking period I have ever read. Definitely going to buy a copy!
Read
September 9, 2010Wonderful book - eating well and with joy!
March 24, 2012
Good review of the issues, but perhaps nothing new, since I've read a few books on the topic already.
Read
November 14, 2012loved it
July 4, 2013
really great!
November 18, 2009
Superb! It's all here.
March 7, 2012
A good introduction to vegetarian and whole food cooking/eating.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews