A Garden Supper Tonight: A year of farm-fresh recipes from a vintage kitchen

by Barbara Swell

Have a seat on the old front porch glider and let s string this mess of pole beans for our garden feast tonight. We ll have the same in-season supper our great grandmothers fixed back in 1895 when food was food, raised close to home and made from scratch for family and friends every day. A Garden Supper Tonight contains vintage economical seasonal recipes, food curiosities, and timeless advice on all things home and gardening.

This book has seasonal recipes by month so that you can always be prepared to make a garden feast; you can make rhubarb vinaigrette in March for your springtime salads, stuffed pan-fried squash blossoms in July, maple roasted winter squash in September, and rum applesauce fruitcake in the chilly month of November.

Recipes Cherry Cordial, Crackly Cheese Sticks, Garlic Scape Pesto, Dandelion Flower Salad, Manly-Man Salad, Buttermilk Biscuits, Ember Broiled Trout, Lemon Cornmeal Plum Cake, Pork with Apple Onion Jam, Apple Butter, Buttermilk Biscuits, Fried Green Tomatoes, Sour Cherry Amaretto Pie and more!

Genres: Cookbooks, History

152 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

Reviews

[Bo · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was okay, but I expected more recipes, and more recipes that I would deem useful and practical. There were a lot of quotes, including recipes, from old cookbooks, and although I will definitely try some recipes from the book, I expected more emphasis on garden produce and recipes thus related.

The author is a more back to basics cook than I, which is fine, but I just can't see myself picking 400 dandelions to make one pint of dandelion blossom honey. She usually triples the recipe, so 1,200 dandelions. I am sure there are others out there who might, so this book might be perfect for you. And, to be fair, not all the recipes are than labor intensive.

There are also quite a few recipes for making wine, and comments about wine. This was of no interest to me, either.

I will try some of the recipes, but then probably dispose of the book.

[Judi · Rating 3 out of 5]

What a fun little book, for people interested in food, eating seasonally, history and using produce from your garden. I certainly enjoyed all the old recipes and historical tidbits. While I don't like to cook, I do like using seasonal produce from my garden and this book has lots of ideas for that.

[Jeana · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoy reading all of Barbara Swell's book! There is so much to learn and try. I find something new I want to try every time I page through it.

[Jen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Historical recipes, mostly from early 1900 women's magazines, that help the economical housewife make fresh and canned foods from seasonal fruits and vegetables. Have been obsessed with it since I picked it up. Veganized their super simple pie crust and it made a great peach pie. Can't wait until I make make some cordial!!!