Keith Snow - The Harvest Eating Cookbook: More than 200 Recipes for Cooking with Seasonal Local Ingredients

THE

HARVEST
EATING

COOKBOOK

MORE THAN 200 RECIPES FOR
COOKING WITH SEASONAL LOCAL INGREDIENTS

BY CHEF KEITH SNOW

PHOTOGRAPHY BY TRAVIS RUNION

RUNNING PRESS

PHILADELPHIA LONDON

To my brother, Steven,

who has been a tireless supporter of Harvest Eating.

Our Harvest Eating victory is as much yours as mine.

2009 by Keith Snow

Photographs 2009 by Travis Runion and Mark Doolittle, unless otherwise noted with the exception of the following images:

BrandX Pictures: p.14, left; p.23, right; p.27, all; p.57 bottom images Jupiter Images: p.262-63, p.265

All rights reserved under the Pan-American and International Copyright Conventions Printed in China

This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part, in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system now known or hereafter invented, without written permission from the publisher.

9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Digit on the right indicates the number of this printing

Library of Congress Control Number:2009928393

ISBN 978-0-7624-3554-8

Cover and Interior design by Amanda Richmond

Edited by Geoffrey Stone

Typography: Berkeley Book, Helvetica, and Italia

Food styling by Keith Snow, Patrick Hartnett, and Tia Maria Bednar

Running Press Book Publishers

2300 Chestnut Street

Philadelphia, PA 19103-4371

Visit us on the web!

www.runningpresscooks.com

I AM VERY HUMBLED TO HAVE HAD THE opportunity to write this book. There are many people to thank. First and foremost, my editor for putting up with my missed deadlines and my sometimes poorly organized work, thanks Geoff! Patrick (Patty-Choux), who jumped in with no life vest to help organize my jumbled mess of a book, you rock man! Those close friends and family members whose prayers, monetary support, and encouragement helped keep Harvest Eating alive during many lean financial years when it seemed just a money pit and an impossible dream. My own family, especially my incredibly lovely wife Sonja, for continuing to believe in me and help support my dreams which oftentimes seemed unlikely to come true. My amazing childrenOlivia Rose, Ava Elizabeth, and soon to be born Garrett Peter, who are a daily inspiration for me to continue modeling the traditional farming lifestyle, while trying my best to provide healthy food for their enjoyment and nourishment. Thanks, Mom (and Dad) for cooking delicious foods (especially soups and eggplant parmesan) and helping make food the main event in my life. Thanks to my in-laws, Elisabeth and Mike, your food traditions and recipes are gifts that keep giving and will always be cherished by our family and our viewers. Special thanks to the talented team at Harvest Eating who care tremendously about the mission were on to change peoples eating habits through exciting, well-crafted visual media. Joseph and Travis, thanks guys, its been a great ride! Im grateful to the loyal Harvest Eating fans and viewers who have supported me with kind words, well wishes, and detailed feedback throughout the years. I especially want to thank God for giving me the ability, desire, and raw ingredients to create great food, and the tenacity and focus to make this adventure become a career.

I GREW UP IN NORTHERN NEW JERSEY in a small town; it was suburbia, a great place to grow up. My days as a young boy were very typical, nothing out of the ordinary. I have very early memories of the foods we ate and how my parents loved good food. There were many amazing meals, especially at holiday dinners. I clearly remember those tables set with fine silver and adorned with linens, candles and of course, great food. We had perfectly roasted turkeys, hams, and roasts all served with plenty of delicious vegetable side dishes. I loved the sausage and apple stuffing, green beans, mashed potatoes, baked sweet potatoes, Brussels sprouts gratine, asparagus, broccoli, steamed cabbage and much, much more. The desserts were equally memorable.

This constant culture of great food shaped my taste buds and my future pursuits, even though I had no idea it was happening. During this time I remember cooking with my mother in the kitchen, licking spoons and whisks filled with freshly whipped cream. These experiences helped shape my love of food.

I vividly remember trips to Van Ripers Farm and Tices Farm, two vibrant small farms and markets in suburban New Jersey, and weekend trips to the familys farms. Both of my uncles (on Dads side) were involved in farming. There were dairy farms in upstate NY, the other near the Amish country in Pennsylvania. In addition, my oldest uncle raised award-winning Morgan show horses in New Jersey. The time spent at farms helped fuel my love for the farming lifestyle. Those fond memories led me to purchase land and build my own farmhouse and horse barn when I returned to the East Coast to raise my family. I have raised chickens, dairy goats, and still keep Paso Fino show horses on the farm. I often say I was born to be a farmer, but wound up a chef instead.

Then it happened, in 1981, at the age of fourteen, a good friend asked me to help him by taking over his dishwashing job at a local Italian restaurant for one weekend so he could vacation with his family. I sheepishly agreed to help, but, to be honest, work was something I was not used to. Ill admit that being the youngest of four kids, I had an easy time around the house. I really did not do any chores whatsoever, this included yard work, which my older brothers took care of. So, at the age of fourteen I ventured into the kitchen of a busy restaurant as a shy, 110-pound kid with zero work ethic.

Chef Phillip Pelicano the owner was a gracious, fiery yet kind man who helped me to quickly learn the business of scrubbing pots and pans, plates, cups, bowls, and silverware. There was no dish washing machine. Each piece was washed by hand, every knife, fork, and spoon. I can remember struggling to keep up during the busy hours when the plates were quickly moving out to the dining room and coming back twice as fast. I remember furiously scrubbing dinner platters for the chef when he had only one or two left in his stack with ten dishes of food on the stove yet to be plated.

Eventually, I managed to keep up and also found that the happenings at the stove and in the pizza oven were far more interesting to me than the dishes I was cleaning. I think my boss, a hardworking retired Italian Navy chef, could see that I loved food. I loved eating it, prepping it, smelling it, and just being around it. Chef Pelicano was like a second father figure to me and treated me with a fondness not usually experienced at work, certainly not in a professional kitchen.