Review: The Beekman 1802 Heirloom Vegetable Cookbook

Working at the library, I come across a lot of cookbooks (and I would probably come across a lot of cookbooks even if I didn't work there, to be honest.) With the start of this new blog, I've decided to start posting reviews of those books that I read! Full disclosure, I'm not making any money off of this (as of this writing, my readership is non-existent) but if I knew how to get sponsored reviews, I would totally do it.

The Beekman 1802 Heirloom Vegetable Cookbook
by Brent Ridge and Josh Kilmer-Purcell

Five stars

I love the Beekman Boys. If you don't know who they are, check out their bio here. And I really recommend watching their old TV show, following their facebook page, and checking out their online store as well! Josh and Brent gave up their careers in order to start a farm in Sharon Springs, New York. They grow or raise just about everything they eat, make goat's milk soap and other products to sell in their store, and cook gorgeous food- and share the recipes with us! This is their third cookbook, and I think it was my favorite so far. It's full of beautiful photographs and delicious recipes featuring veggies at their finest; recipes are divided into four chapters, one for each season.

The Beekman recipes are accessible and easy to follow. Don't be intimidated by the stunning photography- sometimes the better a cookbook looks, the more we think that it's meant for real "foodies" and not the average home cook. There are no complicated techniques in this book, and as an added bonus, I don't think any of the recipes take up more than a full page. Simple doesn't mean bad in this case- the vegetables are given a chance to shine, not covered up in "cream of" anything, or hidden away in carb-loaded, artificially flavored casseroles.

I think that this cookbook works best for cooks and families that are already used to having lots of fresh vegetables around the house- those who frequent farmer's markets, or farmers themselves! If you have your own vegetable garden, I think that you will adore this book. Just about everything you can grow is featured in here. I can't wait to get cooking!

To learn more or to purchase this book, click here.