In Pursuit of Flavor: The Beloved Classic Cookbook from the Acclaimed Author of The Taste of Country Cooking

Edna Lewis was a wonderful cook judging from these recipes. Wish I could have eaten at one of her tables!

This is an iconic book of living off the land, or what’s called farm-to-table food. Her recipes are equal measure of simplicity and perfection. She tells stories introducing each recipe that’ll give you an understanding of just why her particular ingredient choice was made, or she’ll tell you about the possible substitutions or variations on the recipe. She has an immediately likeable voice.My thoughts and pics of the dishes we tried:1) Sautéed Wild Mushrooms – p 44. Quickly sautéed with garlic and then finished with lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Wonderfully aromatic.2) Cooked Greens – p 17. Four ingredients including salt and pepper. It’s neat how much flavor she’s able to get out of that.3) Baked Sweet Potatoes with Lemon Flavoring – p 46. Okay, I bought what’s labeled as sweet potatoes at the store. What I’ve made are clearly lemony candied yams. She explains that the orange and purple flesh ones are yams and that true sweet potatoes have a cream color flesh. I’ll need a do-over after I visit the posh grocery store. The yams were delicious, by the way. The lemon makes them taste special and gives them a fresh brightness.I’ll update this as I play in the book more!Some others I have flagged to try: Fresh Garden Peas with Vidalia Onions – p 10 * Creamed Scallions – p 12 * Wilted Lettuce Salad – p 24 * Sautéed Bananas – p 57 * Cheese Custard – p 71 * Cheese Soufflé – p 72 * Roast Chicken – p 79 * Roast Peking Duck with Brandied Orange Sauce – p 103 * Beef Tenderloin with Béarnaise Sauce * Shrimp Sautéed with Butter, Garlic, and Parsley – p 150 * Coffee Cake – p 232 * Mincemeat Tarts with Brandy Butter – p 268 * Apple Brown Betty – p 275

Came on time in good condition. Good book of receipres.

If you want the tastes of rural Virginia back in the day, read this book. I spent a lot of time growing up in the nearby area between Richmond and Williamsburg (both my parents were born in the land where George met Martha and before that Pocohantas met John Smith) and this book took me back. Not just to the food that my grandmother and great grandmother prepared, such as oyster stew, boiled blue crab, ham (Smithfield) biscuits, succotash, navy bean soup, fatback, hot water cornbread, spoon bread, black eyed peas with stewed tomatoes, kale and turnip greens (never collards) fried spots and croakers (local fish) and deserts such as lemon chest pie, pound cake (always with a POUND of butter), and toll house cookies, but back in time to the stories they told about how food used to be. Even as late as the 1980's, it was common to have what was called a "garden" of at least a 1/2 or whole acre with more acreage planted in corn for the "animals" - though as local traveling butchers became a dying breed (which had in turn replaced neighbors getting together to help slaughter), the "animals" were mostly chicken and geese rather than the pigs and steers of my childhood while tractors replaced horse/pony and plow. As I helped shell lima beans, ate sweet white corn raw right out of the garden, ate a just picked tomato like it was an apple, or just sat in the side yard drinking ice water or iced tea out of a mason jar, my grandparents told stories of salting fish in barrels, corning beef, and making wild blackberry syrup for biscuits back in the day. And well into the 1980's my grandparents still canned and pickled vegetables, made wine out of peaches, apples, local grapes and even potatoes (!)(and knew where to buy moonshine...). My grandfather hunted till he was almost 70 - mostly deer, wild turkeys, and using dogs - possum and racoons (boys hunted squirrel and rabbit) and of course EVERYTHING was shared by the hunters to be eaten (wasn't told that it was squirrel in that stew until AFTER I'd eaten it!). He didn't like to fish but his brother/brother in laws did and of course they shared their fish as he did his game. While I certainly don't romanticize those days (it was seriously hard work and "gardening" and taking care of the animals was done before and after a day's "paying" work and both my grandmother and grandfather had jobs) the flavors of the just out of the garden vegetables; the off the tree sour cherries (whatever the birds didn't get) apples, and black walnuts; free range poultry; hours old eggs; and preservative-free home canned goods will always be remembered and make me wish I could eat that way again. And, not taking food for granted - canning/smoking/pickling what couldn't be eaten fresh and "eating everything from a pig but its squeal" (down to pig tails and souse/"hog's" head cheese) is something that has stayed with me (in homage to my grandparents thrift, I make broth out of my whole roasted chicken carcasses and make what I call refrigerator pasta and refrigerator soup to use up old veggies and bits of cooked meat). As I finish writing this, I see my grandfather as the sun was starting to set finally relaxing on a summer day's end, sitting in his chair in the side yard, waving to everyone he knew as they passed by on the two-lane blacktop "main" road, drinking a big mouth Mickey (beer) or maybe if it had been a particularly hard day a high- ball, while my grandmother called out to us "chillun" as we chased fireflies at dusk, whether we wanted a ham sandwich before it was time to go to bed.

Fun to read but not our favorite recipe preparations. Several of us made recipes from the book and then discussed it by google chat. Some loved what they chose to cook. For my household, the review was meh.

Miss Edna was such a precious gift to the Southern chef and to all the cooks of the US. She does things in quite a different way than most chefs, she is more attuned with nature. This updated recipe book is a wonderful size, lovingly illustrated, printed on very nice paper. It would be a wonderful addition to ANY recipe collection! The recipes are simple yet flavourful as Southern cooks are known for AND no she does not fry everything!She was such a great teacher. It is like learning to cook at your grandmother's kitchen.

This is a great cookbook by this author and I am very happy to have me a copy now. She just seem to be so soft spoken, kept herself up nicely every time I saw something that was with her (many interviews) on YouTube. I have 2 of her cookbooks now (because I’m a lover of all cookbooks and many cookbook authors but especially my African American cookbooks and their authors. Now owning Mrs Edna Lewis’ cookbooks I am very very thankful. Great cookbook by This Southern cooking Dame. Thank you Mrs Edna Lewis and may you continue to rest in love and heaven.

I trust the voice here. I don't feel compelled to go out and buy expensive ingredients. She offers an honest guide to regional cuisine.

Ms. Lewis was practically an institution in her own right before her passing a number of years ago. This book is a treasure trove, and a joy to read. My only regret is that I never got to meet her. I've already made a number of recipes from this book and there will no doubt be many more.

This was recommended and the great recipies and stories from the author are a treat.Well wort adding to your culinary collection.

I love this cookbook, really nice recipes in it, read some things I did not know about certain vegetables. I like everything about this book, will be enjoying some more of the recipes. Thanks.

Love this woman and her wholesome approach to food.

The recipes are not the traditional Southern recipes I had hope for.