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| Cooking rich with olive oil, fresh produce, and raw meat |
As rich and colorful as the traditional Italian recipes inside it, Anya Fernald’s Home Cooked explores the delights of olive oil, fresh vegetables, homemade cheese, and unusual meats. The cookbook draws from Fernald’s culinary adventures in Europe, her experiences building a restaurant and organic meat business, and her enthusiasm for hospitality. Filled with anecdotes and advice, it presents old world techniques with an engaging modern voice.
Home Cooked balances simplicity and warmth with its effective organization, its wealth of artistic photographs, and its conversational tone. The book progresses from staples like stocks and sauces, through appetizers, cocktails, and substantial meat and vegetable dishes, to desserts. The recipes, paired with photographs showing the dish finished or in progress, often begin with a story about the recipe’s origin and several hints. Scattered throughout the book are musings on subjects like entertaining (prepare beforehand and enjoy time with guests), using cast iron skillets (worth carrying one on a backpacking trip), buying meat (grass fed is best), and feeding children (raise carnivores).
The recipes in Home Cooked revolve around simple, high-quality ingredients. These include in-season vegetables, abundant herbs, spices, and olive oil, and overlooked meats such as chicken hearts and beef tongue. Lard and bone broth appear frequently, as do rare and raw meats. Recipes are often uncomplicated but time consuming, relying on balanced seasonings and long cooking times to bring out the rich flavors of the ingredients. The book includes notes on canning and freezing staples like broth and tomato sauce, emphasizing the value of thinking ahead.
Between its wide-ranging recipes and practical suggestions, Home Cooked combines perspectives on eating well, hosting engagingly, and cooking traditionally to create a useful and enjoyable resource.