Wild Garlic, Gooseberries and Me

Irish chef Cotter's lyrical rumination on local fruits and vegetables is much like a relaxing Sunday afternoon walk in the country. Following a loose structure, Cotter wanders from topic to topic, from discussing the etymology of sea spinach to an early morning wild mushroom hunt with little transition. While this may frustrate some readers, Cotter covers a remarkable amount of culinary ground and eventually gets to all the major players in the garden, from root vegetables and tomatoes to multiple varieties of kale and the joys of fresh asparagus. Supplemented with plenty of recipes for dishes ranging from the familiar (Tomatillo Salsa, Field Mushroom and Potato Gratin) to the exotic (Nettle Risotto, Watercress Soup with Walnut and Sweet Pepper Salsa), the real treasures are buried in the text, where Cotter offers numerous riffs on standards like beets, and how to employ turnips in a curry. Readers accustomed to skimming will gloss over many of the jewels scattered throughout the book, but patient cooks will be rewarded with a renewed appreciation for their garden's bounty.