Published in 2019
464 pages
Abra Berens is the chef at Granor Farm and author of Ruffage: a practical guide to vegetables. Abra strives to make simple, delicious food that celebrates the Midwest. She has been cooking since 2006, from the storied Zingerman’s Deli, to chef driven restaurants in Chicago. In 2017, she left her position as Executive Chef at Local Foods to join the Granor team. As the chef at Granor Farm, Abra combines her love of Michigan, cooking vegetables just-pulled from the ground, and sharing them with others around one big table.
Ruffage is her first cookbook and focuses on vegetables– how to select them, how to store them, how to prepare them along with hundreds of recipe variations to make it easy to work delicious veggies into your daily repertoire.
What is this book about?
Named a Best Cookbook for Spring 2019 by The New York Times and Bon Appetit
A how-to cook book spanning 29 types of vegetables: Author Abra Berens—chef, farmer, Midwesterner—shares a collection of techniques that result in new flavors, textures, and ways to enjoy all the vegetables you want to eat. From confit to caramelized and everything in between—braised, blistered, roasted and raw—the cooking methods covered here make this cookbook a go-to reference. You will never look at vegetables the same way again.
Organized alphabetically by vegetable from asparagus to zucchini, each chapter opens with an homage to the ingredients and variations on how to prepare them. With 300 recipes and 140 photographs that show off not only the finished dishes, but also the vegetables and farms behind them.
If you are a fan of Plenty More, Six Seasons, Where Cooking Begins, or On Vegetables, you’ll love Ruffage.
Ruffage will help you become empowered to shop for, store, and cook vegetables every day and in a variety of ways as a side or a main meal. Take any vegetable recipe in this book and add a roasted chicken thigh, seared piece of fish, or hard-boiled egg to turn the dish into a meal not just vegetarians will enjoy.
Mouthwatering recipes include Shaved Cabbage with Chili Oil, Cilantro, and Charred Melon, Blistered Cucumbers with Cumin Yogurt and Parsley, Charred Head Lettuce with Hard-Boiled Egg, Anchovy Vinaigrette, and Garlic Bread Crumbs, Massaged Kale with Creamed Mozzarella, Tomatoes, and Wild Rice, Poached Radishes with White Wine, Chicken Stock and Butter, and much more.
