Preservation Guides and Cookbooks

These are my favorite books for food preservation and cooking with local foods.  They pretty much are in order with my most favorite at the top, although they are all good.

Preservation Books

So Easy to Preserve by University of Georgia Cooperative Extension; order at http://www.uga.edu/nchfp/publications/publications_uga.html

  This is the canning bible of Iowa Extension Offices (mine too!), answers lots of ?’s

Preserving Summer’s Bounty by Rodale Garden Book   (Amazon)

 Excellent book for all methods of preservation, very good recipes
Ball’s Complete Book of Home Preserving  (cheapest through Amazon)

  Very good, thorough canning book for water bath and pressure canning

Root Cellaring by Mike & Nancy Bubel   (Amazon)

 A must for those who want to do lots of root cellaring; has many plans root cellars
Fermenting by Sandor Katz 

  He’s the Guru of fermenting food, and this book has it all

Charcuterie by Michael Ruhlman  (salting, smoking and curing meats, poultry, fish)

 Michael is the master of Chacuterie and this book is the best there is for it.

Preserving by Oded Schwartz

 Fun, colorful book for methods of preserving in vinegars, oils, brandy…, good gift ideas 

Preserving Food without Freezing or Canning

 Excellent book for salting, fermenting, using vinegars or oil, drying and cold storage

Dehydrating Books by Mary Bell of the Dry Store: http://www.drystore.citymax.com/

 Instructive and creative ideas for dehydrating

How to dehydrate and store food  (Youtube video)  google at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QxVpIHre2ao

 step-by-step instructional video for dehydrating, good introductory video to dehydrating

Fresh Food from Small Places  R.Ruppenthal

 good for the apt or condo dweller; year-round container growing, fermenting, sprouting

 

Cookbooks

Nourishing Traditions by Sally Fallon

 Has it all!  Instruction for traditional preservation and much info on nutrition.

Three great cookbooks for creative, fresh recipes using seasonal, local products:

  Lots of lore, guidelines, charts, tips and pics; fun to read

  Earth to Table by Jeff Crump and Bettina Schormann

  Simply in Season by Mary Beth Lind and Cathleen Hockman-Wert

  Farm Food by Chef Daniel Orr

Savoring the Seasons of Northern Heartland by Lucia Watson/Beth Dooley

 wonderful, ethnic-Minnesota traditional recipes, lore and pics (a must for Minnesotans)

Cooking with the Seasons by Monique Hooker

 seasonal cooking from French heritage (no longer in print, but grab it if you find it)

New Prague Hotel Cookbook by John Schumacher

 delicious German-inspired recipes; good guide for preparing wild game

Farmer John’s Cookbook by J. Peterson

 Great, fun book for growing, storing and cooking with garden produce; lots of good tips

Moosewood Restaurant Kitchen Garden by David Hirsch

 Excellent, creative book for vegetarian gardening and cooking

Chez Panisse Cooking by Paul Bertoli with Alice Waters

 Renowned and Legendary Organic Restaurant and Chef

Betty Crocker Pie and Pastry Cookbook  never fails me for a delicious pie of any kind